


When Eyes Meet Eyes

by luxshine



Series: Bonded [1]
Category: Captain America (2011), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel (Movies), Marvel Avengers Movies Universe, The Avengers (2012), Thor (2011)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/F, F/M, M/M, Mindlink, Soul Bond, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-07-10
Updated: 2012-09-27
Packaged: 2017-11-09 13:05:50
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 50,108
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/455777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/luxshine/pseuds/luxshine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In a world where everyone has a soulmate, and finding them is as easy as following your heart, Tony Stark is convinced that he needs no one at his side. Bruce Banner, on the other hand, is convinced he doesn't deserve anyone.<br/>Fate, however, has other ideas.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Avengerskink meme, and my first fic on the fandom.
> 
> Of course, knowing me, it had to turn into a multichaptered epic! *headdesk*
> 
> Betaed by the amazing mandalee1013, who is doing her best to help me keep the other plotbunnies at bay.

It is a tug, at the back of your head. A small, almost unnoticeable push to go one way or the other, looking for someone out there, who is also being pushed in the same direction.

Most people follow it without a second thought. Society itself rewards those who do, since the push always ends with two people meeting, after being pushed in the same direction.  One person who would become your partner and best friend; the one that complements your life in all senses.

Tony Stark was not most people.

As many other children, he had been taught about the 'Pull' and the wonderful reward when one followed it since he could speak. But he was very smart, and he saw his parents. Howard and Maria Stark were bonded, everyone knew that thanks to the press that constantly followed the rich and famous, but Tony knew that they were very unhappy. His mother drank to forget that her husband was never there and Howard... Howard was far happier with his inventions and his company than with his family. So Tony never saw the appeal on finding his own bondmate to be forever unhappy with like his parents.

At first, he kept trying to ignore the Pull. If his heart told him to go right, he would stubbornly go left. When everything in his heart told him to go to Arizona, he would fly to New York. When his instinct told him that Harvard could be a place to run away from the shadow of his father, he chose to go to MIT and follow the old man's steps. He ran from the Pull so much that it became instinct and when his parents had the car accident, he added alcohol to his many ways to ignore it. Until it was nothing more than a whisper that Tony could easily forget.

 

_Except for that night, fifteen years after the accident, when he woke up from a nightmare ** ~~experiment~~**. He hadn't felt that scared **~~angry~~ ** in his whole life and he was almost ready to bolt from his house **~~jail~~** before JARVIS's voice stopped him, reminding him where he was **safe**. _

 

It wasn't until Afghanistan when he felt the pull again. As he flew away from the Ten Rings base, he had no idea of where he was and his only guide was that feeling, the Pull calling him in one direction: south.

 

*          *          *

 

When Bruce Banner met Betty Ross, she was surprised to find out that he didn't know what a bondmate was, and had patiently explained to him everything about the ‘Pull’.

But Bruce never believed her. Not because he couldn't feel that Pull, a feeling that made him want to go to Malibu most of the time and at other times made him look at the possibility of moving to New York.

No, the reason why Bruce never believed her was because he remembered his father's words very clearly. He wasn't worthy of being loved. He was a monster who would die alone.

And he loved Betty, even when a small part of his mind kept dreaming about beaches and mansions, about engineering and not biology.  So he stayed with her, and accepted the project that her father was working on, praying not that she wouldn't find her bondmate, but that she would never find out about the monster that lurked in his brain.

Until the accident that proved his father right. Until the Other Guy came to be.

Then, Bruce was always on the run, always hiding, and his second priority was to run as far away from the pull as he could. As far away from civilization as he could.

Unfortunately, the Other Guy had other ideas, and every time there was an incident, Bruce would wake up closer to California, the Pull tugging in his mind with almost as much urgency as the Other Guy.

 

_Three years after the Other Guy came to be, Bruce woke up with a horrible pain in his chest, only to see his skin already turning green. And for the first time since the Other Guy appeared, Bruce didn't fight the change. He needed to run; he needed to protect ** ~~him~~** something, before it was too late. And they ran, from Italy and right into the African Desert, and they would've kept on going if exhaustion hadn't set in._

 

After too many nights of waking up drenched in sweat, feeling as if his heart had been carved out, Bruce decided to contact Dr. Stern. Because he was sure that the Pull was getting stronger thanks to the Other Guy. And the only way to stop him from destroying his future bondmate's life was to get rid of his green rage problem.


	2. 1.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony Stark and Bruce Banner had many reasons not to look for their bondmates. Ironman and Hulk less so. But when Loki steals the Tesseract from SHIELD, their reasons become less important than saving the world.

After getting rescued from Afghanistan, Tony had no time to worry about the fact that the Pull was getting harder and harder to ignore.  Alcohol was not good enough anymore, and trying to bury himself in new projects like improving the armor that had gotten him out from the Ten Rings cave was barely enough.

Even the darkest, coldest height he could reach without the suit freezing up around him was not enough for him to figure out how to ignore the fact that in his head, the Pull was almost screaming at him in anger.  He wasn't sure why, but now he felt angry at the oddest times.

It was not that he had no reasons to feel angry:  he had shrapnel inside his body eating towards his heart, and a miniature arc reactor was the only thing standing between him and a painful death. His oldest friend had tried to kill him. The arc reactor had almost killed him, and a bunch of doctors at SHIELD had decided that he was not fit to be part of a superhero boyband.

Those were excellent reasons to get angry. But still didn't explain the simmering rage that was always present, the almost overwhelming desire to just grab a hammer and destroy everything in his lab.

The one time where he could have felt justifiably angry, he had felt numb. It had been the night after he had defeated **_~~smashed~~_** Stone, when he still was months away from realizing that the Palladium core of the Arc Reactor would kill him over time, and Pepper wanted to talk.

"I've found him," Pepper said, without any preamble, and Tony had to fight to keep his charming smile on.

The thing was, once upon a time Tony had thought Pepper was like him. Smart enough to realize that the Pull was nothing but a worldwide case of delusional wishful thinking. That she wouldn't fall prey to the idea that you had to wait until you found your bondmate in order to be in love, to be happy. That maybe they could be happy together. But she had destroyed that idea not only with her words but with her smile. Tony had never seen her so happy.

"Congratulations," he answered, managing to even convince himself that he was sincere. "Who is the lucky guy?"

But at his question, Pepper lost her smile. "It's complicated, Tony..."

"Is he married?" Tony didn't want to pry, but before she was his PA, Pepper had been his friend. And after what had happened with Stone, she was his only friend aside from Rhodey. So he wanted her to be happy, even if it was not with him. And people marrying to later find their bondmates, it was not unheard of. "I can hire him divorce lawyers, if needed..."

"No, no," Pepper shook her head quickly, sitting next to him. "It's his work. We're not going to be able to have a ceremony yet."

Tony was not a genius for nothing. He understood what Pepper wasn't saying, why she wasn't saying her brand new bondmate's name out loud. There were a handful of people they had met due to the Iron Man debacle; most of them in military outfit with way too many letters for Tony's taste. One of them had to be Pepper's new bondmate and the secrecy left him with just one possible candidate.

 

_Much later, and only to himself, he could admit that it had been the anger he felt at being left behind what prompted him to discard SHIELD's carefully constructed alibi, to announce to the world that he was Iron Man. Yes, part of him was also putting himself out, trying to reach his own bondmate ( **look, I'm Iron Man, I'm not going to break, I'm not going to run away** ), but most of it was anger. Most of it was him wanting to see the SHIELD's agent's smile disappear for only one minute._

 

However, after the first month, Tony had grown to genuinely like Pepper's bondmate, even if he still refused to call him by name. In fact, he had even offered to hold a secret, private ceremony so they could finish their bond without prying eyes before he had to go to New Mexico following SHIELD's orders. Still, when he was trying to keep a good mood after the competition of the Stark Tower and said bondmate interrupted what promised to be a fun evening teasing Pepper about all the things that she could do as a CEO (And, of course, apologizing for his 12% comment) just to hand him some files... Well, Tony wished he could get the man stationed in Antarctica for a few months. See if the bond survived that.

"I think you have a lot of homework," Pepper said, as Tony opened the files in front of him one by one. There was too much information to be absorbed in one night. "I'll be leaving for Washington tonight then."

Tony wanted to argue, and was even ready to offer that her bondmate stayed while they celebrated, when he finally looked at the fourth screen where a green giant was fighting what were obviously military tanks in what looked like Arizona.

"Have fun," he called over to Pepper, trying to hide what had called his attention by grabbing another of the files; a blue cube that he remembered from his father's notes. It was a thing he had called Tesseract, and had been dug from the Ocean during Howard's mad quest to find Captain America.  And now, it had been stolen. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

Once he was sure he was alone, he turned back his attention to the Hulk files, forgetting completely about the Tesseract.

He had seen footage of the Hulk before, when he had been sent by Pepper's bondmate to insure that General Ross buried the Abomination in the deepest, darkest military bunker he could find so SHIELD wouldn't be forced to use him as part of the Avengers Initiative. But that footage had been grainy, shoot from very far away, and focused mostly on Blonsky, not on the Hulk himself.

What Tony saw made him frown, as he kept expanding every bit of Dr. Bruce Banner's file, his accident and his transformations.

 

*          *          *

 

"You know? For a man who is supposed to avoid stress, you picked up a hell of a place to settle," The woman's voice made Bruce immediately weary and once again he kicked himself mentally for falling for such an obvious trap.

"Avoiding the stress isn't the secret," Bruce walked away from the woman in black, looking around at all the exits. If she was with Ross that meant that he had to let the Other Guy out, and lose his home again.

Rocinha had been a great place to hide when one didn't want to be found, even if now he had learned that he had never been quite safe anywhere. Leaving it had been unfortunate, but a necessary evil in his search for a cure. However, once he reached New York, it had been almost impossible to leave the city, since the Other Guy kept trying to remain there somehow, but Bruce had managed to overpower his other half trough a lot of effort in keeping calm.

It helped a little that, after two weeks in the African Desert, he could no longer feel the Pull. Only the Other Guy, always simmering under his skin.  His last bad incident before the mess in Harlem had been in September of the same year, when once again he woke up from a nightmare: only that it had not been the usual explosions and military men shooting at him. That nightmare had been of feeling cold, so much cold that he thought he would finally die.

Now, he was under no illusion that the Pull was gone. He just couldn't feel it under the Other Guy's rage.  And it was obvious that the Other Guy could feel it, since when he was not running away from the military or whatever that had made Bruce transform, He would always go in one of two directions: either towards New York City, or to California, no matter where Bruce hid. That's why he had chosen Calcutta to hide once he managed to get his curse locked up more or less. It was far from America; far enough that not even the Other Guy could reach New York if he was unleashed.

"You've been more than a year without an incident." Miss Romanoff said, after introducing herself, but Bruce could hear the small, almost imperceptible tremor in her voice. She was afraid of him, of the Other Guy.  "I don't think you want to break that streak."

That alone told Bruce that they had really been watching him since he had left Harlem. That no matter what he did, he was going to be under scrutiny. Yet another reason not to let the Other Guy out, because if he did, the Other Guy would follow the Pull... and who was to say that SHIELD and the military wouldn't like to use his bondmate to lure him in, or to try and control the Other Guy?

"Yeah, well," he tried to laugh away the anger he felt at the mere idea of his unknown bondmate in SHIELD's custody. "I don't always get what I want."

To her credit, Miss Romanoff didn't flinch away as they circled the lonely table in the middle of the hut. She talked about the crisis that had prompted Fury to send her to look after him, and everything sounded so sincere, that Bruce, for a moment, wanted to believe that yes, he could be useful and someone out there didn't think that the Other Guy was a weapon to be contained.

 But all those thoughts were interrupted when he saw the Tesseract in the phone that Romanoff gave him. The blue energy of the cube made him feel calm. It reminded him of half-remembered dreams, where a blue light very similar to the Tesseract pulsed like a heartbeat. _Like his heartbeat_.

And that was a problem, because the blue was calming.  So much, that he had been able to yell at Miss Romanoff, mustering all his anger... and the Other Guy hadn't even reacted in his head.  Not that he let her know that, even as she was pointing at him with a gun, fear obvious in her eyes. Not even when he got confirmation that they weren't alone in the outskirts of the city, that for all the pretty words, SHIELD still considered him a threat, wanted to jail him.

"I'm sorry, that was mean," he smiled, trying to play off the fact that he hadn't started changing; to make it look as if it was intentional. "I just wanted to see what you would do. Why don't we do this the easy way? Where you don't use that, and the... Other guy doesn't make a mess, ok? Natasha?"

He was sure that the Other Guy could easily take the 40 or so soldiers that were surrounding the hut, but he wasn't at all convinced that the Other Guy would be able to come to play, not with the calm he was still feeling just by remembering the hue of the Tesseract through the phone's screen.

"How was it stolen?" he asked, trying to make conversation once they were up the air. Mostly, in order to avoid focusing on the nervous looks everyone was throwing his way. Even Miss Romanoff, even when she was far more discrete than the others.  "You mentioned that a friend of yours was compromised?"

"Everything you need to know is on that phone, Dr. Banner," Miss. Romanoff answered, looking him straight in the eye. Of all the agents SHIELD could've sent to recruit him, she was probably the best choice as she was very good hiding her fear. But Bruce had seen many people fear him before. Even Betty, who was brave enough to walk straight in front of the Other Guy when he was about to kill someone, was a little afraid of him.  The only ones who weren't afraid were the ones who didn't know who Bruce was.

"Everything I need to know or everything you want me to know?" Bruce put on his glasses to read, realizing that she wasn't in a mood to talk more now that she had fulfilled her mission.  And now, Bruce only had the files to worry about.

That and the strangest sensation that, for the first time since the accident, the Other Guy was not trying to break his carefully constructed control. Instead of the usual anger under his skin, he could feel what could only be described as a pleased rumble.

For some reason, Hulk wanted to go to SHIELD's headquarters, and that scared Bruce because he didn't have any desire to stop himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All the lines that sound familiar from the movie, are from the movie. I'm a bit obsessive with keeping with canon even in AU's...


	3. 2.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony and Bruce finally meet. However, there seems to be an unexpected problem with their bond.

After delivering Loki into the capable hands of a SHIELD squadron, Tony decided to stay behind as Captain America went ahead to meet with Fury and the others. His heart was pounding so hard in his chest that he could believe that there was a second reactor powering it.

He had met the man indirectly responsible for his unhappy childhood, and still couldn't understand why his father had been so obsessed in finding Captain Rogers under the ice. The man was a good fighter, that was not up to discussion, but other than that, other than the symbol he had become, there was no reason why his father couldn't accept that he had died stopping Hydra, almost 70 years ago.

The fact that Steve Rogers had just gone toe to toe against a demigod didn't explain Howard's obsession.

Didn't explain why now he was realizing that 70% of his father's invention and research had been around Steve Rogers, not about replicating the serum-- _no_ , _that had been General Ross's baby, and had almost destroyed Dr. Banner's life_ \-- but about finding Rogers under the ice.

That wasn't in Shield's files of course. That was another thing that angered Tony. Every single one of the files that he had been handed had been carefully censored, because there were things that Tony apparently couldn't know.

And they wanted him to help, without all the variables. It made no sense.

Still, he had seen things that he was sure they didn't know he would notice. Like the scribbled notes on Howard's files, about the Tesseract as an energy supply. Notes that Tony knew well, without even knowing about the cosmic cube, because he had seen them before, in the notes Howard kept about the Arc Reactor.

Even that had been due to Steve Rogers in his father's mind.

Oh, yes. Tony was getting very _angry_.

Maybe it was not Rogers's fault. After all, Roger's was just another experiment. But the military, SHIELD... those had a lot to answer.

Take Dr. Banner, for example. Not only the files suggested that the accident that had turned him into the Hulk was no accident at all, but also it was obvious that SHIELD hadn't done enough to keep General Ross from destroying Banner's life. They had watched him run from continent to continent, and never really tried to help. Oh, no. Instead, they let him shoulder the blame for the incident in Harlem, for the one in Italy... for every single time that the problem had been that the military approached him, not to talk, but to attack.

Tony would've also tried to **_smash_** them, even if he didn't turn into a green rage monster.

"Mr. Stark," Pepper's bondmate interrupted his thoughts, obviously waiting to escort him to wherever Fury wanted him to be. They had called him to consult and not only didn't trust him with all the information; they didn't trust him to find his way to a meeting room.

 And then they wondered why he wasn't a team player.

"Agent," Tony smiled. Yes, he was angry, and yes, he wanted nothing more than to get away from the Helicarrier -even as the Pull wanted to keep him there, but Tony was used to ignore that part of his head- but it wasn't the Agent's fault. All things considered, he and Pepper were also victims of SHIELD's attempts to secrecy. "What are you doing here; I thought you would've in Washington."

"World security is far more important," Agent Coulson's expression didn't change as he started to lead him through the maze that was SHIELD's headquarters, but Tony knew that he was thinking about Pepper. About all the time they didn't spend together. If he was honest to himself, the agent and Pepper were the perfect example of what a bonded pair should be when they were together. Not like his parents. "I'll see her when this is over."

"Look, it's not that hard," Tony insisted, just as he started hearing voices coming from the control room. To his own dismay, he could now easily recognize Captain America's voice, and Natasha's was impossible to forget. Thor's was also easy to pinpoint, due to his accent. Shakespeare in the park, Tony had joked, but the truth was that it wasn't exactly like that. It was just the closest Tony could come to a comparison.

But the last voice... that was _new_.

"I think it's about the mechanics. Iridium, What do they need Iridium for?" Soft, calm and at the same time, a little insecure.

And Tony _couldn't_ stop himself from answering.

"Stabilizing material." But before he continued, he turned to see Agent Coulson. After all, he still was worried about Pepper. "Listen to me, pick a weekend, I'll fly you to Portland. Keep the love alive."

He kept talking, kept moving, trying not to forget his real target as he entered the room. In fact, he kept ignoring the men behind Thor, not looking at the scientist who was hiding in the back, just as he could feel the Pull in his head growing stronger and stronger. It was taking everything he had just to talk, and it was almost impossible to remember to put the special plug on the computer in order to get the files he really needed.

He might have even managed to sit down, not looking at Banner, resisting the Pull, when the doctor answered Rogers' question.

"He’s got to heat the cube to a hundred and twenty million Kelvin just to break through the Coulomb barrier."

Banner's voice broke his resistance. Once again, he couldn't stop himself from answering.

Even worse, he _didn't_ want to stop himself from circling the table to meet the man.

"Unless, Selvig has figured out how to stabilize the quantum tunneling effect," Tony said, trying to stall. Bruce Banner was just like the file picture, only a bit thinner, a bit wearier.

It made Tony angry, to know that he was seeing a man who had spent the last two years on the run, just because the army were a bunch of stupid bastards.

"Well, if he could do that," Banner continued, still too far away for Tony's liking. And at the same time, too near. "He could achieve heavy ion fusion at any reactor on the planet."

Pull or no Pull, Tony couldn't stop himself from grinning. He knew that Banner was smart, that much was obvious even from the censored files, but to actually be able to talk to him without dumbing down any explanation, was perfect. "Finally, someone who speaks English."

Rogers said something, but Tony was not listening. Instead, he was clasping Banner's hand, for the first time in his life doing exactly what the Pull wanted him to do.

"It's good to meet you, Dr. Banner. Your work on anti electron collisions is unparalleled." But even as he was speaking, the Pull so strong that he couldn't even stop himself from grinning, there was no sense of fulfillment. He couldn't feel the bond being created when everyone had told him that it was impossible not to notice when it happened. It made no sense, and Tony in that moment wondered if all the years of drowning the Pull in his head had somewhat made him incapable of actually bonding, even as he found his bondmate. Still, he forced himself to keep talking. "And I'm a huge fan of the way you lose control and turn into an enormous green rage monster."

 

*          *          *

 

Bruce was not used to feeling _calm_.

Ever since the accident, there had been a crawling sense of growing anger under his skin. He had always been at war with the Other Guy, who wanted nothing else than come out, smash everything in his path. It had taken years of practice to be able to control it, but the anger never really went away.

Until now. 

Even as he was surrounded by SHIELD's agents, the very same agents he had spent most part of the last years avoiding unsuccessfully, he couldn't even muster a bit of panic.

Bruce was paranoid enough to think that maybe SHIELD had found a way to make Stern's formula airborne. If that was the case, at least he was high enough that the fall would trigger the transformation, if worse came to worst.

The fact that he was actually thinking on how trigger a transformation however, didn't worry him as much as it should. Even if he couldn't admit it to himself, he had grown used to the Other Guy.

Meeting Captain America had been a shock. He didn't even know that Captain Rogers had been found. It couldn't have been long, or at least, Bruce hoped the Captain hadn't been around for long because the scientist in him couldn't stop thinking that if he had had access to Rogers's blood _before_ the accident, maybe the Other Guy wouldn't exist.

Captain Rogers, Steve, had been nice enough, not mentioning the Other Guy; pretending not to care about the Other Guy. But Bruce knew better. Not even Betty had been able to ignore completely that Bruce was one bad day away from wrecking everything in his path, and, if the files about Steve Rogers were accurate, Bruce was pretty sure that he was wondering if he could defend all SHIELD's agents from Bruce's angrier half.

Still, Fury had been true to his word. When Loki had been spotted, no one had asked Bruce to join the chase. He was left alone in his lab, working on the algorithm needed to pinpoint the weakest Gamma source he could find.

He had been working on a small detour of that project, in order to make sure that his algorithm couldn't be used to track the Other Guy when something made him look up. A group of SHIELD's agents passed by, escorting Loki; obviously a prisoner. But that hadn't been what made Bruce look.

In the back of his head, he could feel the Other Guy again, rumbling. Something had changed when Loki came on board, something that threatened the calm he had been feeling. Bruce took his glasses off and pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to find his usual balance; the one he hadn't needed since coming on board.

It wasn't the Pull, but it was close enough. And that made Banner feel a bit _afraid_.

He was still centering himself when Natasha came to look for him, when he was trying to convince both Rogers and Fury that trying to get information out of Loki was useless, that Thor wouldn't know how to make a portal with the Tesseract. It had never taken so long to get his heartbeat under control, but he wasn't _angry_. It was as if his anger was being drained, directed somewhere else. Even after getting confirmation that yes, SHIELD had worked hard to try and make a cage for him, that there was no guarantee that they would let him go once they got the Tesseract... he just couldn't muster his usual anger. In fact, he could joke about it.

And then he heard him.

"Stabilizing material." Tony Stark walked into the room, followed closely by Agent Coulson. They had been having a conversation outside, but Bruce couldn't really follow it. The only thing in his mind was that, as soon as he had heard Stark, the Other Guy had gone absolutely silent. It was almost as if he wasn't there.

That had never happened. Even in the best of times, where he could actually relax, the Other Guy had always been there. But somehow, Tony Stark's voice was enough to make Bruce feel as if everything after the accident had been just a nightmare.

Watching Tony Stark move around the headquarters as if he belonged there made Bruce smile. It was obvious that Stark was putting on a show, even as he was explaining. Bruce didn't think anyone had noticed how the millionaire put something under one of Fury's command screens. Just him, because he couldn't take his eyes away from Stark. Tony.

_Him._

When Steve made another obvious question, Bruce couldn't stop himself from answering, just to get Stark's attention. Just to get the man to come closer.  His mind was completely clear, and the only thing he wanted was to touch Stark. But he couldn't just go to him. Not in front of everyone.

"He’s got to heat the cube to a hundred and twenty million Kelvin just to break through the Coulomb barrier."

Bruce didn't need to come closer because Tony Stark was walking towards him, smiling.

"Unless, Selvig has figured out how to stabilize the quantum tunneling effect," Stark said. And yet, even as he smiled, Bruce couldn't help but noticing a small edge of _anger_ in his voice. Bruce was very good at identifying anger. Only that, strangely after all he had read about the billionaire, it wasn't directed towards Bruce.

"Well, if he could do that," Bruce continued, fighting himself not to smile. "He could achieve heavy ion fusion at any reactor on the planet."

"Finally, someone who speaks English."

He had managed to impress Tony Stark of Stark Industries. Four years ago, Bruce would've been jumping out of joy. But at the moment, all he could think about was that they were touching. He could feel Stark's pulse under his hand, calm and collected. The man was not trying to hide his fear.

He wasn't afraid of Bruce.

"It's good to meet you, Dr. Banner. Your work on anti electron collisions is unparalleled." Perhaps, Bruce mused, Stark didn't know about the Other Guy. It was the only explanation possible. "And I'm a huge fan of the way you lose control and turn into an enormous green rage monster."

Or he did. And he didn't care.

"Thanks," Bruce muttered, surprised. He let go of Stark's…

_Tony’s_

_…_ hand as Fury came in the room, still talking about how Bruce would be let go once the Tesseract was recovered, but Bruce wasn't really paying attention.

Because in the back of his head, he was sure he could hear Tony's voice, repeating equations and possibilities on how to maintain a stable portal using iridium, what other materials would be needed, and a running commentary on Fury's words.

But Stark's mouth wasn't _moving_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These were very short chapters, but next time they'll start getting longer. Oh, and extra thanks to the great mandalee1013 who went and rechecked this chapter twice :D
> 
> Oh, yes. As other pairings start appearing, I'll change the header to reflect that.


	4. 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bruce and Tony are finally alone. And for a genius, Tony misses some very important clues while Bruce realizes that there's far more than meets the eye with their bond.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you might have guessed by the fact that one of the tags is mindlink, there is some telepathy speak in here. To make things easier to follow, all things that are both in bold and italics, are telepathy.
> 
> If they're just italic, it's just normal thoughts.

SHIELD's lab was almost up to Tony's standards, and he could see easily that Banner had already started working on the problem. 

As Tony started putting out his equipment, he looked at the careful way Banner was handling Loki's staff, and once again, he felt frustrated. Why hadn't he felt a bond forming? He took off his jacket, almost thoughtlessly, and his dress shirt to end up only with his black undershirt, fully aware that his arc reactor shone through the flimsy fabric. He had never felt comfortable with strangers being able to see the arc reactor, not since Obadiah, but Banner was different.

"You can call me Bruce," Banner said, softly, not even looking up as he propped the staff on the table to get some readings. "Getting called Banner brings up some bad memories."

Tony frowned, looking at the distracted scientist. He was pretty sure he hadn't spoken out loud, and yet, Banner, no, Bruce, had answered his thoughts with perfect accuracy.

 _And why shouldn't he, if he's your bondmate?_ His internal voice, that sounded a lot like a very annoyed JARVIS, asked. _Even if your alcohol addled brain managed to destroy your ability to bond with him, he's still the one person in the whole world who could understand you._

Bruce looked up at that moment, to meet his eyes, as if he was confused at something. It was a bit unnerving, to see how tuned Banner was to his mood, in such short notice. So he tried to focus on something else: the staff, the Tesseract.

SHIELD's secrets.

"The gamma readings are definitely consistent with Selvig's readings of the Tesseract," Bruce said, once again at the perfect time to echo Tony's thoughts. "But it's going to take weeks to process."

"If we bypass their mainframe and direct that to the home cluster, we could clock this around 600 teraflops," Tony said, but his mind was somewhere else. He was cataloguing the equipment he had brought on board; trying to decide which ones would be more useful for their research. 

"All I packed is a toothbrush," Bruce told him, once again in that tone that told Tony that he had been talking out loud. **_The lab was good before you arrived, but this is impressive._**

"You know, you should come to Stark Tower one of these days," Tony smiled at the compliment. "Top ten floors, all R&D. You're going to love it, it's like Candyland."

 _And_ , he added in his head, _if I'm missing anything you want, we can get it. I can give you one of the floors for your research._

"Thanks," Bruce smiled, sadly, making Tony frown. He didn't like the idea of his bondmate being sad. Even if they hadn't bonded. Maybe the lack of bond was because they hadn't been together long? Maybe more contact was needed. **_But the last time I was in New York I kinda broke...Harlem._**

"Well, I promise you a stress free environment, no tension," Tony circled around Bruce, right into his personal space, and the doctor didn't even flinch. One more proof to Tony that they were bondmates. He was sure that Banner never let anyone that close. "No surprises."

As he spoke, he pocked Bruce on the side with the electrified pointer he used to calibrate the reader, making him look up sharply.

But not, as Tony had theorized angry because the good doctor was smiling.

He looked straight into Bruce's eyes, but there was no sign of any green in them. Just calm, _amused_ , brown.

"Nothing?" But he wasn't asking about the Hulk. He was asking about the bond. Because as sure as he was that Bruce Banner was his bondmate, Bruce didn't seem as affected as Tony was.

And was it his imagination or Bruce was smiling at him condescendingly. As if he knew something that Tony didn't.

But before any of them could say anything about Tony's question, Captain America's angry yell interrupted their moment.

"Are you nuts?"

"Debatable," Tony dismissed Rogers, making a joke at Bruce. He didn't want his father's _best friend_ to know that he couldn't bond. So Tony took the easy road, made it about the Hulk. "Seriously, what's your secret?"

"Is everything a joke to you?" If Bruce wasn't angry, then Rogers was working out quite a tantrum in his behalf. It annoyed Tony, for many reasons but mainly, because he could hear his father's disapproval in Roger's voice.

"Funny things are," Tony answered quickly, trying to get the man to leave him and Bruce alone again.  But before he could say something more, Bruce's voice interrupted him.

**_I'm sort of hungry, can you hand me the blueberries?_ **

"Treating the safety of everyone on this ship isn't funny," Rogers continued to put his foot in his mouth, angering Tony even more. Because of course, the best way to make Bruce feel comfortable was to prove to him that everyone on board except for Tony were deathly scared of him. "No offense, doc."

 ** _I'm fine, Tony, don't worry_** , Bruce told him, still smiling before turning to see Captain America. "Ah, it's all right. I wouldn't have come aboard if I couldn't handle pointy things."

"You're tiptoeing, big guy," Tony couldn't help but feel less angry as he heard Bruce joke around Rogers' words. "You need to strut."

 ** _I don't think they would like me strutting when I'm green_** , Bruce's amusement was contagious, and it made very hard for Tony to care what Rogers was whining about. What he wanted was to be alone with Bruce, and figure out _why_ he hadn't felt the bond forming, and yet was convinced that Bruce was his bondmate.

"And you need to focus on the problem, Mr.  Stark!"

"You think I'm not?" Tony retorted, frowning again. It seemed that Rogers was adamant on ignoring every word out of Bruce's mouth. He grabbed the bag of blueberries that Bruce had requested and started opening it. Good thing he could multitask. "Why did Fury call us and why now? Why not before? I can't solve an equation if I don't have all the variables."

 ** _Oh, so that's why you're poking me?_** Bruce interjected, at the same time that Rogers spoke.

"You think he's hiding something?"

"He's a spy," Tony answered Rogers, only because he knew that Bruce wasn't expecting an answer. He was still waiting for his blueberries, though. "Captain, he's _the_ spy. His secrets have secrets. It's bugging him too, isn't it?"

"Ah," Bruce looked up, insecure. It was obvious that he wasn't feeling comfortable at the attention being focused on him. "I just wanna finish my work here..."

Still, Tony needed his support.  Especially as Captain America kept yelling at him. **_Please,_** he thought, **_even if you don't agree... please side with me._**

 

*          *          *

 

All his life, Bruce had never been let down by the scientific method: Form a theory, confirm it, challenge it, and do various tests in order to repeat the result. Sure, it had been what let to the accidental birth of the Other Guy, but other than that, it had always worked.

**New theory: Tony Stark was his bondmate and they had some sort of telepathy.**

**Evidence:  The Pull had stopped in the moment that Tony Stark had set foot in the helicarrier. Also, Bruce was pretty sure he was hearing Tony's thoughts.**

**Experiment procedure: Try to carry out a conversation answering not what Tony says, but what Tony thinks.**

And it had been easy, once that they had been left alone in the laboratory.  Amazingly, Tony's mind seemed to be always following at least five tracks, if not more, all at the same time, and Bruce was unable to follow them all. There were equations, new ideas,  running commentary on everything he saw, a particular repetitive chant of "why?" that seemed to permeate everything, and yes, one of the tracks -the easiest to follow, but at the same time, the one that Bruce was afraid to pay attention to - was completely devoted to Bruce. 

But even so, carrying a conversation with Tony's half formed thoughts was easier than Bruce had thought.

At one point, Bruce stopped saying his whole answers out loud, finishing them in his mind, and even so, Tony still answered correctly every single time.

Without calling attention to what they were doing.

It hadn't been until the hard poke with the electrified stick _\--which had been a surprise, Tony hadn't actually thought about doing it until it was too late for Bruce to register what was going to happen--_ when Bruce realized that the reason why the other man wasn't addressing their sudden mind link was because Tony himself hadn't realized what was happening. That the stray thought about being unable to bond was not part of the white noise of Tony's running commentary about the SHIELD agents, but about Tony himself.

They were _bonded_ and Tony hadn't realized it.

Part of Bruce wanted to be horrified at the situation. If Tony didn't know it, then what Bruce was doing was a terrible violation of the other man's mind. There was also the fact that the Other Guy made it dangerous for Bruce to be around anyone, and his mere existence would put his bondmate in danger. And of course, his father's hard learned lessons: Bruce was not worthy of having a bondmate.

But the bigger part of him was so happy, so _content_ with the bond that he couldn't care. He only needed to find the way to break the news to Tony. Especially since, now that he paid attention to the 'Why?' chorus in Tony's mind, he realized that it was not a general question but a more focused 'Why isn't the bond forming?'

How couldn't Tony feel it, Bruce wasn't sure. Maybe it was the Gamma radiation in his blood, or maybe the Arc Reactor was running interference. There was even the chance that Loki's stick was responsible, since they had proof that it affected human brains.

Bonds were not Dr. Banner's specialty, but he was sure that a telepathic connection hadn't been mentioned in any of the texts he had read when he realized that the Other Guy was particularly sensitive to the Pull, and so Bruce wished he could call Leonard Samson. Sure, the man had been at one point his rival for Betty's affections, but as far as Bruce remembered before running away to Calcutta, Dr. Samson _was_ the American authority on soul bonds.

When Captain America accused Tony of endangering the whole crew, Bruce expected to get angrier. But instead, he could feel again how his anger was ebbing away... and how Tony was getting upset. That was another interesting effect, the fact that Tony seemed to drain Bruce's anger.

The fact that it was not a surprise was a new feeling for Bruce. In fact, he had been feeling small moments of strange calm ever since that attempted trip from Italy to the African Desert.

_…When Tony had been in danger, in Afghanistan._

More data, a new hypothesis was needed. And a new test.

He tried to communicate his calm to Tony, absorb the anger again. He could take that anger, without bringing out the Other Guy. As long as he could see that Tony was near, that his bondmate was safe, Bruce was almost certain nothing would happen.

He took the blueberries that Tony offered, still smiling. His bondmate still hadn't realized how they were communicating, not even when Steve interrupted and it was obvious he wasn't hearing Bruce's answers.

"Captain, he's _the_ spy. His secrets have secrets. It's bugging him too, isn't it?"

"Ah," Bruce looked up, jolted out of his thoughts. He really didn't want to get involved in the conversation. He just wanted Captain America out of the room so he could talk to Tony about the bond.  "I just wanna finish my work here..."

 ** _Please, even if you don't agree... please side with me._** Tony's voice in his head, however, made him rethink his plan. His bondmate was pleading, begging even, and Bruce found that he couldn't deny Tony anything.

"A warm light for all mankind, Loki's jab at Fury about the Cube," he finally said to Steve, as he concentrated on trying to get all the anger out from Tony. **_Don't worry, I got your back. And I agree with you._**

"I heard it," Steve nodded, obviously not following.

"Well, I think it was meant for you," **_And I'd really like a blueberry_** , Bruce smiled at Tony, who simply handed him the blueberries, without letting go of the bag. Bruce wanted nothing more than to get their hands to touch, to see if a renewed contact would be enough to make Tony realize what had happened, but due to Tony's position and Steve's presence, it was impossible. "Even if Barton didn't tell Loki about the Tower, it was still all over the news."

Bruce hadn't actually heard about it, as there were other priorities in Calcutta. But the information was right there in the foreground of Tony's thoughts, right along the annoyance he felt at Rogers. There was something about it that made Tony even _angrier_.

"Stark Tower?" Steve asked, obviously not following Bruce's logic like Tony did. Of course, Tony was probably hearing Bruce seconds before Bruce actually spoke out loud, so he couldn't blame him. "That big, ugly...building in New York?"

 ** _Don't listen to him_** , Bruce sent to Tony, just as the billionaire was glaring at the Captain. "It's powered by an Arc Reactor. Self-sustaining energy source. That building will run itself for... what? A year?"

Bruce wasn't at all sure about it, since the figures kept changing in Tony's head. But he seemed to get everything right, as his bondmate was still smiling. Unfortunately, explaining everything to Steve wasn't that easy, as every word out of Tony's mouth seemed to put the man on edge.

Of course, Tony admitting that he had hacked SHIELD's fields as soon as he had hit the bridge didn't help much. And Bruce couldn't help but admire his bondmate, who simply didn't budge at the orders.

Someone who wouldn't be cowed by Ross. Or the Other Guy.

"Just find the cube." Finally, Rogers left them alone. Bruce swallowed, getting ready to finally talk about the bond, when Tony's thoughts cut through his mind, filled with sadness and resignation.

**_That's the guy my dad never shut about? Wonder if they should've kept him on ice._ **

"Guy is not wrong about Loki," Bruce answered out loud, trying to get Tony to realize what was happening. "He's got the jump on us."

The answer Bruce got was not words, but a very clear image of Loki, wearing Wile E. Coyote ears, sitting on top of a big, wooden box with the word ACME printed on the top.

 ** _It's going to blow up in his face, and I'm going to be there to see it_** , Tony grinned at the idea

 ** _Well, I'll read all about it_** , Bruce shook his head as he returned to his calculations. He realized that perhaps it was not the moment to bring the bond up. Not on SHIELD's headquarters, where everything they said and did was up to scrutiny. 

"Or you'll be suiting up like the rest of us," Of course, if Tony kept answering out loud to things that Bruce didn't say, someone upstairs was going to wise up soon, and they both would end up as lab specimens.

The Other Guy growled at the idea.

"I don't get a suit of armor, I'm exposed. Like a nerve." Bruce lowered his eyes, trying not to think about what the Other Guy meant for the bond. Would he affect Tony's mind too? Would Tony be drowning in uncontrollable rage the next time the Other Guy made an appearance? "It's a nightmare."

Whether he meant the Other Guy or the idea of Tony suffering for it, Bruce didn't really know.

"You know, I've got a cluster of shrapnel, trying every second to crawl its way into my heart," Tony didn't look up as he was talking. Bruce knew it meant he was really paying attention, so he didn't dare to send his answers in thought form.  He didn't want anyone to check on the security tapes and realize that only one of them was moving their mouth. "This stops it. This little circle of light. It's part of me now, not just armor. It's a... terrible privilege."

"But you can control it," Bruce answered. He couldn't stop the bitterness and _jealousy_ in his voice. Not even for his bondmate.

"Because I learned how."

"It's different," Bruce insisted. There was no way to control the Other Guy. That was the whole point. He was chaos unbound.

Tony walked towards him and, with a wave of his hand, made all the data on Bruce's screen minimize. They were eye to eye now, and, if not for the transparent screen, close enough to kiss.

Bruce wondered when he had started thinking about kissing Tony, if it was that how the bond established itself with normal couples, or if it was just a side effect of the gamma radiation.

"Hey, I've read all about your accident," Tony said. In his mind, however, the words were a bit different. **_I've dreamt about your accident. I've woken up sweating because I saw you bombarded with gamma radiation._** "That much gamma exposure should've killed you."

"So you're saying that the Hulk..." Bruce stopped himself. He didn't like to say that name out loud. "The Other Guy...saved my life? That's nice. It's a nice sentiment. Save it for what?"

Tony smiled again, and Bruce's heart skipped a beat. **_Save it so we could meet._** "I'll guess we'll find out."

"You might not like that," Bruce answered, pulling up his data readings again, as Tony walked away, the opportunity to kiss lost. **_Now...If I'm not careful...I could kill you._**

"You just might." **_I know you won't._**


	5. 4.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Bruce tries to make Tony realize what's going on between them, Tony unearths a SHIELD secret that changes everything he knew about bonds.

To say that Steve Rogers didn't like the Twenty-first Century would be an understatement. Since he had woke up in the fake hospital bed, and realized that he was no longer in the 1940's, his life had turned into a living nightmare.

Part of him wasn't that sure that it was not a nightmare that he was really dying of hypothermia and everything around him was just delusions brought by the cold.

It would explain the presence of Anthony Stark.

Iron Man was nothing like Howard had been. Thinking about Howard made Steve's heart hurt, even more than thinking about Peggy.  Despite the years, he still remembered clearly that first meeting, just as if it had been yesterday. Not because it had been minutes before his life changed completely, but because it was Howard.

His best friend, besides Bucky.

The one who had made him his shield and had made his uniform. Who had helped him to try and understand Peggy.  And the only part of his old life he couldn't believe was gone. In fact, many times, he had to remind himself that Howard had died, that he couldn't go to Stark Tower asking for him, that he wasn't in the secret laboratory in Brooklyn. No matter how many times he reminded the information, his heart insisted that Howard _had_ to be alive.

Maybe Howard's son could explain that. However, it wouldn't be any time soon. Steve would have loved to blame Anthony for their animosity, but the truth was that Steve was also to blame. After all, he seemed to dislike Iron Man just for the fact that Anthony was not Howard.

However, different as they were, Howard would have agreed with his son in one thing. The fact that SHIELD was keeping secrets was not a good sign. So Steve did the only thing that had always worked for him.

He followed his instincts and decided to start investigating on his own.

 _Howard_ would've been proud.

 

*          *          *

 

"Thor?" Phil Coulson was the only agent in SHIELD who had worked closely with Thor's friends before Selvig had been drafted to work on the Tesseract. "There's something I need to show you."

There was a lot of fear among some of the higher commanders regarding Thor. Even Fury agreed that he was an unknown variable, and that just because Asgard was in peace with Earth now, and claimed to have protected the planet before, it didn't mean they were friendly.

But Phil had seen Thor with Jane Foster. He had seen the fear in Thor's face when she had been threatened. SHIELD's analysts had theorized that the Asgardian's interest in the doctor was mostly a cultural curiosity. Phil knew better.  In fact, he had been quite surprised when Jane told him that Thor had left her, despite the fact that she knew he was her bondmate.

For him, it had been obvious seeing the scientist with the god, always aware of the Asgardian's feelings.  But in his report, Phil had remained silent. He knew all too well the pain of not being able to complete a bond that was supposed to be there. Later, Jane had told him that Thor didn't seem to be aware of the Pull's existence, or even felt it... but she had felt the bond forming between them both.

So Phil led Thor to one of the facial recognition screens, the one that wasn't looking for Loki or the missing agents.

"As soon as Loki took the doctor, we moved Dr. Foster," Phil explained, following the script that had been decided by Fury and Hill. But at the same time, discreetly, he pulled out an envelope from his jacket. If anyone saw him, he had a good cover story. Everyone knew he was the superhero fanatic on board. "She'll be safe."

Thor nodded; his eyes sad. "Thank you," he managed to say. And while Phil understood that Asgardians may not have Pulls of their own, he could see that they also fell in love because he could see the pain in Thor's eyes.  "It's no accident Loki taking Erik Selvig. I dread what he plans to do when he's done. Erik is a good man."

"He talks about you a lot," Phil agreed, walking around Thor to place the envelope in his belt. It was a risky plan, but he trusted Pepper. In their way to the airport, she had pointed out that if Loki had managed to get inside SHIELD's secret base, the Observatory wouldn't be a challenge. At least in Stark Tower, they would have War Machine and Jarvis helping. And a direct line to Tony and Thor if needed. Besides, Hill and Fury had forgotten one thing: Selvig knew about the Observatory too.

He hoped Thor would read the letter in private. He hoped that no one would notice the tracking bug. Because as worried as Thor was for Jane, it was no comparable to how inconsolable Jane had been when Thor had disappeared. Another Destroyer wouldn't stop Jane Foster from reuniting with Thor.

 

*          *          *

 

The screen where Tony was keeping an eye on JARVIS's progress started beeping, making both he and Bruce to look up.

The Gamma tracking algorithm was ready, running and thus, Tony had been left with nothing else to do. He knew that Bruce was making sure that the algorithm couldn't track him, and he wanted to reassure him. Wanted to tell him that JARVIS would erase every byte from SHIELD's computers if that was what Bruce wanted...as long as Bruce didn't leave Tony's side.

There was also the problem of the bond. While Tony had never expected to _want_ a bondmate, he had read on the subject. And of course, he remembered quite clearly his mother's words about it.

"The world stops when you meet your bondmate," Maria Stark used to say, a glass of wine in her hand. She only drank when Howard was away, once again in his useless search for Captain Popsicle. Those had been the most dreaded days of Tony's childhood. "Nothing exists but you and her, and when you touch for the first time...you won't want the world to start again.  The bond is born then, but you still need to nurture it, with the bonding ceremony. And then, you will know what they feel, and they'll know what you feel. And then you both will be happy."

Back then, Tony had wondered how his father could go away, leaving her alone. Now he knew it was possible. Pepper and Coulson proved it, if nothing else. Still, her mother never looked happy, not even when Howard was there. And Howard always had the same haunted look in his eyes, as if he was missing something, even as he was with his bondmate.

In fact, the only time in which Howard and Maria had acted as typical bondmates had been when they both died at the same time, in the hospital while the doctors had been desperately trying to save them after the crash.

 ** _Wait_** , Bruce told him, pointing at the screen. Tony raised an eyebrow, since Bruce was not wearing his glasses at the moment. It was amazing he had seen something Tony had barely registered. **_What was that?_**

Without answering, Tony returned to the file list he had been watching. They had nothing to do with the Tesseract, Selvig, Asgard or Hulk, as far as Tony could tell. Nothing there should've been noticed by Bruce.

"File #32437," Bruce clarified. "Under 'Project Wakanda' and right above 'Project Livewire'"

 ** _Of course, SHIELD couldn't do this alphabetically_** ; Tony shook his head, laughing at his own joke when he saw what had called Bruce's attention

File #32437 was titled "Bonds", and Tony smiled. Maybe Bruce was also feeling something, despite the fact that Tony couldn't complete the bond correctly. That was a good explanation as to why the good doctor had noticed that file.

However, as Tony opened it, both lost their smiles.

Apparently, SHIELD had been studying the practical uses for bonded pairs for years.  Putting bonded pairs together in missions, which were obvious, but also separating them on purpose. Keeping an eye on the bonded half who wasn't an agent, in order to correctly pinpoint the always mortal effect of the death of one of the pair. Studying bonded coma patients.

The last part of the file, however, made his blood grow cold.

Because the experiment was about the long time effect of a bond under cryogenic conditions. And the test subject was Howard Stark.


	6. 5.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Tony tries to make sense of what he and Bruce have just found out about Howard, Loki's plan gets in motion and the Hulk makes an appearance.

Tony watched the words on the screen, but they made no sense.

There were pictures too, and video, but no matter how much he looked at them; he couldn't help but think he was going insane.

Howard Stark, getting rolled out of the operating room where Maria Stark had died, but still alive according to the charts.

**_Tony._ **

Comatose, but alive.

Video of a cryogenic chamber, where SHIELD doctors kept Howard for years. Alive, breathing, unchanging.

**_Tony!_ **

While Tony was mourning his parents, Howard was alive. When Stane started selling weapons to the enemy, Howard was alive. When Tony had to save himself from a terrorist group in Afghanistan because Stane had sold him out, Howard was alive.

And Fury _knew_.

**_Tony!! Calm down!_ **

Bruce was holding his shoulders, looking straight into his eyes.

 _Wow. Green eyes. Who knew a panic attack was good to bring out the Hulk?_ he thought, smiling.  Bruce's brown eyes were beautiful too, but they looked stunning when they were green.

 ** _He's not going to come out to play, Tony, but you need to calm down before our hosts think he is._**   Bruce wasn't smiling. His mouth was set in a grim line. But the words were clear in Tony's head. **_Yes, I'm talking to you, and no, I'm not moving my mouth._**

"How...?" Tony asked, grateful to be able to focus on something that was not the last video, the video where Howard opened his eyes inside the cryogenic chamber despite the fact that it was impossible, where...

 ** _Don't speak out loud!_** Bruce's voice admonished him in his head, and, once again, Tony found that he just couldn't deny him anything. Of course, it was going to make the conversation very one sided, since Tony couldn't project his thoughts like that.

 ** _Yes, you can._** Bruce smiled now. The same amused smile that he had when Tony had poked him, the one that Tony thought meant that Bruce was hiding something.  **_I wasn't. I was just waiting for you to notice it._**

Tony opened his mouth, closed it again; shocked. He quickly went through the whole six hours he and Bruce had been together, and realized that he had been a bit unfair with Captain America. Of course he was ignoring what Bruce said...because Bruce wasn't saying it out loud.

 ** _We are bonded,_** Tony finally managed to put his thoughts in order long enough to create a coherent sentence. **_But...I didn't feel it happening...How?_**

 ** _I didn't feel it either_** , Bruce moved away a bit, and the image of a hidden camera just above Tony's head appeared in his mind. **_But it is a bond. I have been feeling completely calm since you came on board...but when you get angry..._**

 ** _…You get angry,_** Tony finished, sitting up on the desk. **_That's how a bond is supposed to work. But no one mentioned...this._**

 ** _I don't think there's a precedent for this,_** Bruce glanced at the huge screen, where SHIELD's files were still being processed. JARVIS was highlighting everything that mentioned the Tesseract, and Bruce had to admit that it looked bad. **_What do you want to do about your father?_**

Before Tony could even form the thought of an answer, the door of the lab opened to let Fury in. He could still hear Bruce's thoughts, how the good doctor closed Howard's files quickly, so it looked as if they had only been seeing the Tesseract files and not everything else.

"What are you doing, Mr. Stark?" Fury asked. It was the normal, frustrated anger that Tony was used to hearing from the man. The man who had hid his father for so long.

 ** _Don't let him know you know yet, he would be interested in knowing why you cared about Bonds and the Pull, since you always said you had no need for either_** , Bruce reminded him. And, with his back to his bondmate, Tony realized why he hadn't noticed their telepathy before. It was just like hearing Bruce speak out loud.

"Ah, Kind of been wondering the same thing about you," Tony answered, with the same disdain he had always shown to Fury's secrets.

"You're supposed to be looking for the Tesseract."

"We are," Bruce piped in, giving Tony time to hide what they had been really looking at. "The models locked and we're sweeping for a signature now. As soon as we get a hit, we'll get its location within half a mile."

"You'll get your cube back, no muss, no fuss," Tony finished Bruce's idea, hoping it would look as just a genius at work thing. And to stop Fury from reading too much into it, he pulled the big screen. "What is Phase Two?"

 

*          *          *

 

Once Tony had acknowledged the bond, his thoughts and emotions ran more freely towards Bruce's mind.  It was strange, to be able to know so much, despite having known each other for such a short time.

Still, it was quite useful as they presented a united front to Fury. They knew the answers about Phase Two, as they were far more obvious than Project Bonds, but both he and Tony agreed that finding the Tesseract was a priority. Later, Tony could easily sue SHIELD for everything they had for hiding Howard. Once they had stopped Loki's plan.

Unfortunately, they had no way of predicting that Captain America had listened to them. Rogers looked quite angry at Fury, as he declared what he had found after leaving the lab. Tony snorted at the idea of the computers being too slow, but since neither wanted to admit how fast they had found Phase Two, none spoke up.

Soon Natasha and Thor were in the lab too, and that shattered Bruce's calm. Fury was talking to them as if they were freaks, experiments, threats. Tony was getting angrier, Bruce couldn't blame him, and his own anger was fueling them both.

And it wasn't the fact that they were talking about him as if he was a monster. Bruce knew that he and the Other Guy were a dangerous threat to everyone around, no matter how much Tony tried to make him think differently. But when Fury and Rogers started to insult Tony...it was impossible for him not to intervene.

"We're a chemical mixture that makes chaos," Bruce said, trying to put some distance between him and everyone else. "We're...we're a time-bomb."

He wasn't talking about the others, though. He was talking about him and Tony. What was he thinking by accepting their bond? If the Other Guy came out, his anger could sweep Tony's mind too.

"You need to step away," Fury told him, moving forward in a gesture that Bruce knew well. It was the placating gesture of 'give me some time to get the tranquilizer darts' that he had seen many times done by Ross' men.

"Why shouldn't the guy let off a little steam?" Tony asked, placing his hand on Rogers' arm, as if looking for more support. And yes, they shouldn't lose focus: The problem wasn’t them. The problem was SHIELD's secrets.

"You know damn well why!" Rogers yelled, moving away. And yes, that stung Bruce a little. So much for 'the only word I care about is that you're helping us track the cube'. "Back off!"

"Oh. I'm starting to want you to make me." And that didn't sound like Tony at all. Bruce took a deep breath, as that was honest anger from his bondmate. Tony was seconds away from hitting the symbol of America in World War II.

All of them were getting tense. Bruce still tried to stay as far as possible from them, near the window in case he needed to jump off. Because sooner or later, someone was going to throw the first punch.

 ** _Don't you dare jump Bruce_** , Tony sent him, even as Captain America insulted him; tried to bring him down.

But Bruce could feel the hurt in Tony's thoughts, and that was too much.  He couldn't let his bondmate be insulted like that.

"Agent Romanoff, would you escort Dr. Banner back to his..." Fury started again, obviously trying to separate him from the group.

_Separate him from Tony._

"Back where?" Bruce asked, trying still to keep a lid on both his anger and his bondmate's. "You rented my room."

"The cell was built..."

"In case you needed to kill me, but you can't!" Bruce finally had it, all the eyes on him, all the scrutiny was getting to him. He should've never left Calcutta, even if he had found his other half by doing so. "I know. I _tried_."

**_Bruce... what?_ **

"I got low," Bruce explained, still talking out loud. If the others heard, he didn't care, but he didn't want to hurt Tony by exposing him to the deep feelings of depression that came with that particular memory. "I didn't see an end, so I put a bullet in my mouth. The Other Guy spit it out."

They all looked shocked. All of them except for Tony, who was devastated. Even if he tried to block the desperation in his mind, Tony had felt it. And of course, horror. Because if Bruce had managed to kill himself, _he would've killed Tony._  That thought alone was enough to bring Bruce back to the problem at hand. Getting everyone _away_ from his bondmate.

"I moved on. I focused on helping other people," Bruce continued, trying to figure out how to make Tony see that it wouldn't happen again."I was good, until you dragged me back into this freak show and put everyone here at risk!"

As he spoke, he noticed that Natasha wasn't paying attention to him. She had turned to the window, to some point among the clouds.

"You wanna know my secret, Agent Romanoff?" Bruce asked, making her turn to see him. Wondering if he was giving Tony enough time to run away. "You wanna know _how_ I stay calm?"

He wasn't really thinking about bringing out the Other Guy. He just wanted to get close enough to make them go away, to make Tony understand. But didn't get the chance to show her exactly how much control he had. The computer started beeping, showing that they had found the Tesseract, but as he wanted to warn Tony and the others, the explosion destroyed the floor under his feet.

 

*          *          *

 

Hulk did not know where he was, but one thing was clear.

Mate was in danger. Mate was not there where Hulk could see him.

Getting out when puny Banner did not want him to come out hurt. It confused him. Made everything wrong.

Hulk hit a metal beam, when a gasp made him turn.

Red head woman. Scared, stupid woman. Hulk remembered her. Not like Betty. Dangerous.

She hurt Hulk's mate once.

She hurt puny Banner too.

She tried to get mate away from Hulk.

Hulk would make her hurt too.


	7. 6.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The appearance of the Hulk puts a new spin on Tony and Bruce's link. And two other bonded pairs find themselves in trouble.

Tony was barely inside the suit when he felt the change through the bond. He had been trying to keep Bruce calm, to let him know that he was okay, but the _painconfusionshockanger_ was so strong, so sudden, that it took all of Tony's will power not to let it overwhelm him.

He hadn't felt like that in _years,_ not since the nightmare that had led him to give JARVIS control of all the doors in his two houses.

 **_Bruce! I'm fine! You don't need to change! Stay where you are!_ **

The only answer he got was a roar, and a disjointed image of him, broken, in Afghanistan. It was not an image from the ransom video, or something that could've been photoshopped by the press.  No, it was a clear memory, of the day when Tony had woken up to discover a rudimentary electromagnet inside his chest, but the memory was tinted green.

Tony blinked, as he got airborne. "JARVIS? I need to know if there was a Hulk sighting when I was in Afghanistan."

"According to SHIELD's files, the Hulk was sighted outside Egypt, travelling east, sir," JARVIS dutifully informed; at the same time that Maria Hill's voice informed him that unless the Engine was fixed, everyone on board would die. This meant that Tony had to somehow calm his bondmate and fix the engine problem, fast.

 ** _Bruce... calm down! I can't go to you right now, but..._** Tony hadn't even finished the thought when a new image came to his brain. It was the same cage, but now a very weak, tiny and thin Bruce was holding him. But it was not really Bruce, as his skin was green. It was like watching an opposite version of the Hulk, which was not Bruce, but someone weaker, useless...

 ** _We're going to have a talk about your self- esteem, big guy;_** Tony sent to his bondmate, trying desperately to reach through the anger. A new image came to him, this time Natasha, on top of him, with a knife pointing to his Arc Reactor. That had never happened, not really. Sure, Tony had felt as if Natasha _had_ carved his heart out when he found out that Natalie was actually a spy, but it hadn't been literal.

Tony had managed to fly straight to the destroyed engine, still fighting with the urge of just blasting everything away until he reached Bruce.  As he reviewed the damage, looking for the quickest way to fix it, more images kept coming to his head. Some had to be the past, but some others, like chasing Natasha around what looked like the lower level under the lab, had to be occurring right then.

"Stark!" He also had to stop himself from blasting Rogers for his comments minutes before. He could be as professional as needed, but that didn't mean he didn't want to hit the guy. Go a couple of rounds, once they saved the Helicarrier.  "Stark, I'm here!"

"Good, let's see what we've got..." Tony managed to force himself to focus, just as he saw an image of Thor hitting Hulk so hard that they were back in the hangar level. Once again, anger rose in his chest. It was the same thing he had been seeing in Bruce's files, before meeting his bondmate.

Every time the Hulk made an appearance, everyone around answered by trying to hit him harder. Everyone tried to hurt him, without any real reason. No wonder Hulk was always angry.

 

*          *          *

 

Long Hair hurt Hulk.  Moved faster than tiny men.

Tried to talk to puny Banner.

But Hulk was not letting Banner out. Banner was weak, couldn't protect Mate.

He needed to find Mate. Not let him be hurt again.

There are words in his head. But it is not puny Banner, demanding to be let out. It is Mate's voice, but Hulk can't understand him.

Big words hurt Hulk head. He needs to see Mate. And Long Hair is in way.

Hulk is stronger than Long Hair. He can smash Long Hair. Then save Mate.

Then hide. Where tiny men can't hurt Mate. Where Hulk can protect Mate.

Away.

 

*          *          *

 

Tony was starting to push the turbine when he felt Hulk's anger rise even further. Some idiot was shooting at his bondmate, making him remember every single time that Ross and his men had tried the same tactic again. 95% of the casualties "caused" by the Hulk were, in fact, collateral damage caused by the army. Of course, Bruce wouldn't see it like that. His bondmate seemed convinced that he deserved to suffer.

As soon as this was over, Tony was going to have a long conversation with Nick Fury about getting General Ross stationed somewhere in Antarctica. And _then_ he was going to find out what the hell was going on with his father and SHIELD.

 ** _Hulk! No!_** He tried to send as he felt and _saw_ his bondmate's angrier half jump out of the lab to teach the annoying soldier a lesson. Not because Tony thought the soldier didn't deserve a good scare, but because once Hulk was outside the Helicarrier, there was no way SHIELD was going to let him back. Sure, Tony knew his bondmate could take care of himself, but they had just _found_ each other. He didn't want to have to look for him again.

Not now, that he knew what he was missing.

The only answer he got was a sudden flash of pain and anger, and the image of the pilot deploying his parachute. It was a bit frustrating, the fact that he couldn't hear Bruce's thoughts anymore, just get those fleeting glimpses of images of what Hulk was seeing.

If it wasn't because Tony was busy trying to save the idiots who where shooting at his bondmate, it would've been a great chance to test the bond's properties.

Unfortunately, as it was, he just had the chance to beg Hulk to be careful where he landed, to get back to him as soon as he could, just before the engine started working, and thus, Tony had a lot of other things in his mind.

 

*          *          *

 

When Phil Coulson had realized that his bondmate was Tony Stark's PA, he hadn't wanted to complete the bond. Not because Pepper wasn't perfect: in fact, now he was pretty sure that even without the Pull, he would've fallen in love with her anyway. But creating the bond meant that if he died, Pepper would die too. Just for that reason _\--and the problems with SHIELD's protocols regarding bondmates--_ Phil had tried to fight the bond with Pepper.

Pepper, bless her, had put a stop at that non-sense almost immediately. She had argued that when they met, it had been far more probable that she would've ended dead before him thanks to Obadiah Stone. Being Tony's PA, also made her quite a catch for kidnappers and since Tony had declared to the world that he was Iron Man; that was yet another source of danger for Pepper.

"We only live once, Phil," she had said, in the Portland house that Tony had given them to see each other in secret. "The bond is already here, and I honestly don't want to live a miserable life knowing that we could've been together and we didn't because we were afraid."

It was impossible not to fall in love with your bondmate. It was not 'love at first sight', of course. Most people needed time to adjust, to get to know each other, but the end result was the same. In the past, there was even the belief that love didn't have to enter the bond. That one could marry someone not their bondmate, and live happy with their bondmate married to someone else.

After one weekend with Pepper, Phil couldn't understand how they did it.

She had been right, all along. The bond was the best thing that had happened to him. And while most of the time they couldn't feel each other due to the distance between them, he still could feel the warmth in his heart. The certainty that Pepper was also feeling him.

He didn't feel the pain when Loki stabbed him in the back. Barely felt the staff going out of his body. The only thing he could think about was Pepper, and how mad she would be if he missed their date in Washington. He was not going to die here, not until he could see her again.

"You lack conviction," he said to Loki, just as he shot the experimental weapon he had carried there. And that was true. Conviction was the key.

He knew it was possible for a bondmate to survive if the other half of the bond was still breathing. As long as he kept breathing, his body on automatic, Pepper would live.

Nothing else mattered. Just the next draw of breath, the next beat of Pepper's heart.

 

*          *          *

 

Natasha Romanoff was adaptable, if nothing else. It was the reason why she had managed tosurvive for so long, despite being in the wrong list  of almost all the international security agencies.She had adapted at being trained to ignore the Pull, and finding her bondmate amongst her enemies. 

And, due to the dangerous job both her and her bondmate had, she had learned how to keep her cool, even if the bond was making every cell in her body want to go and save her bondmate, without any regard for anyone else.

So she was probably one of the only people in the world who could hurt her bondmate and not be paralyzed by pain.

Unfortunately for her, her bondmate was the other. And under Loki's control, he didn't even seem to feel the bond, the angry, horrified feeling that she had to clamp down even as she pointed a gun at his head.

"Don't make me do this, Clint," she said, trying to reach him. But even as she spoke, she could see that it was useless. Clint was preparing his knife, and the only thing she could do was attack.

Did Clint even remember that if he killed her, he would die too? She wasn't sure. Because even though he wasn't fighting with all his abilities, he was still trying to kill her. And maybe only she could tell that he was just a bit slower, just a bit weaker.

Maybe that was also Loki's fault.

Clint Barton would've never let his weapon go even if he was being bitten.

When she hit him against the banister as hard as she could, he turned around to see her, the glazed look finally leaving his eyes.

"Natasha?" he asked, but the bond didn't let him lie. He was still alert, still ready to attack.

This was why, even as it pained her to do so, she hit him again; letting all her fear and frustrations fuel her strength.

She was going to get Loki out of her bondmate's brain, even if she had to break Clint's head to do it.


	8. 7.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Loki's machinations, the group has been separated. And now each has to decide if they want to become a team or not. For Tony it was never a question, but Bruce is still afraid of what the Hulk means to their bond.

"They called it."

Fury's words kept reverberating in Tony's mind even as the man himself kept going on and on about Coulson's belief in the Avengers Initiative.

Tony wasn't paying attention to them. He knew Phil's thoughts on it, and how he had been against Tony's exclusion from the team. He was thinking about how much Fury _didn't_ know about his right hand man.

Fury didn't know about Pepper, who must have died at the same moment that Phil drew his last breath. Didn't know that Tony had lost not one, but two friends that day. Which was why he wasn't going to stick around, listening to the man go on and on about heroes and loss and how they had no idea where Banner was.

Tony didn't know either. But he could feel one part of his brain completely relaxed, sleeping, and he knew that Bruce was all right. Just tired. And wherever he was, he was safe and would come back to Tony, somehow. After all, it wasn't as if the Stark Tower was hard to miss. 

He still couldn't get his bondmate's thoughts, but now he couldn't tell if it was because Bruce was Hulked out, or because of the distance. Logic indicated that he needed to do experiments, to figure out what was going on there, but that line of thinking brought him back to the one thing he didn't want to consider: the file about his father.

Howard Stark was being kept alive in a coma, just to see the effect that would have on his bondmate, who wasn't Maria Stark.

No, experiments with the bond didn't seem a good idea.

He left the control room, sure that he wouldn't be able to control his anger.  He wasn't sure where he was going; only that he didn't want to be in front of Fury. He might not have the problem that his bondmate had with anger management, but if he heard one more empty phrase about heroism, he was going to kill someone.

Tony walked without specific direction in mind, but somehow ended up where the so-called Hulk-proof cage had been standing. He stared right at the stain of blood that had been left by Phil's body, before the paramedics came for him.

"Sir?" JARVIS politely interrupted his thoughts from the small communicator Tony was wearing hidden under his shirt. "Incoming call from Mr. Hogan."

"Send it to voice mail." Tony didn't want to take the call, didn't want to hear a confirmation that Pepper was dead.

Why Coulson... _Phil_... had never accepted his offer to retire from SHIELD and live happily ever after with Pepper, having a thousand kids? Why would he keep risking his life, knowing that Pepper would suffer too?

The stain had no answers for Tony. But it made him think. About Phil and Pepper, his father and whoever his bondmate was -since the files didn't have that vital piece of information. And Tony was starting to think that maybe, just maybe, the best thing he could do for Bruce was to stay away from him.

 

*             *             *

 

**_Nothing else mattered. Just the next draw of breath, the next beat of Pepper's heart._ **

_Virginia "Pepper" Potts was used to multitasking. Back when she had been Tony Stark's PA, she had to manage the company for him, and that hadn't changed much when he had given her the company. It was a second nature to her, and she was managing the presentation for the new clean energy buildings at the same time that she was trying to convince Jane Foster not to just go straight to SHIELD's headquarters and demand to see Thor without any problems when she felt the cold, stabbing pain in her heart._

_Phil!  Her tablet fell to the floor, ignored, as she grabbed her chest._

_Breathe, she told herself. Please, breathe. I'll breathe for you, Phil, just, please, don't stop. Just Breathe._

 

*             *             *

 

Bruce walked outside the warehouse where the Other Guy had landed, and surveyed the damage. Despite his misgivings, it seemed that what the watchman told him was true. There was nothing that shown that the Other Guy had been there, except for the hole on the roof.

That was completely unlike other experiences Bruce had had waking up after the Other Guy made an appearance. Usually, it was very easy to pinpoint the direction he had been coming from just judging by the destruction around.

This... was a bit anticlimactic compared to those times.

 ** _Tony?_** Bruce closed his eyes, trying to sense his bondmate. However, his mind was only occupied with his own thoughts. It seemed as if he had fallen too far from the Helicarrier to actually be able to do more than just know that Tony was alive.

That was pretty frustrating, and he could feel the Other Guy stir just a bit under his skin.

Usually, Bruce didn't remember much of what happened when the Other Guy was out; just small glimpses of pain, confusion, and a lot of anger. But ever since Stern, at least he had gotten better at remembering _what_ triggered the Other Guy.  Those memories came handy, as it was a good guideline of what to avoid.

Although in this case, it was complicated.

The trigger was easy to pinpoint. The surprise pain at falling one floor down, together with the general frustration of knowing that everyone thought they could just insult Tony and get away with it just because Tony let them. Surprisingly, Bruce wasn't angry at the knowledge that SHIELD had tried to contain him and the Other Guy. That was to be expected. It had been their dismissal and outright rudeness to Tony what had set him on the edge.

The explosion had been the final straw on that particular camel.

Now, Bruce didn't know much about Tony's life. After all, when one was on the run, it was difficult to keep up with the news. But he remembered that, back before the Other Guy, when Tony had been an arms dealer and Bruce just one more scientist working for the army, the higher ups rarely had a good thing to say about Stark.

That was not going to sit well with the Other Guy. Or Bruce, if he was being honest with himself.

Bruce sat on the grass, trying to figure out what to do next.

The logical thing, the _responsible_ thing to do, was to try and get away from Tony. The bond had been created without them even knowing each other, and Bruce was pretty certain that they could go back to that balance, each on the other side of the world, just vaguely aware of the other's emotions. Being near Tony put Bruce's emotions on the edge, and eroded his carefully created control.

And if the Other Guy hurt Tony, even accidentally, Bruce wouldn't be able to forgive himself.

But even as he thought about that, Bruce remembered Tony's face as he was telling him that the Other Guy wasn't a bad thing. That Bruce could learn to control it.

There was an overwhelming sense of trust that Bruce felt coming from Tony. His bondmate trusted him unconditionally, and Bruce had the feeling that it was not just because of the bond. Even if they weren't so intimately tied, Tony wouldn't be afraid of him.

And remembering that trust, there was only one thing Bruce could do.

He got up, and started walking north. He hoped to arrive in New York soon because even if he couldn't find the Helicarrier again, he was sure to find Stark Tower.

 

*             *             *

 

The first thing Clint was aware of was not the fact that he was tied up to a bed, or that he had a headache so bad that it felt as if he had tried to balance the helicarrier with his head.

No. It was the wave of pure relief that came from his bondmate as he opened his eyes.

"Don't worry, you'll be all right."

She looked as she always did on a mission, guarded, cold. But Clint knew better. He had known the truth behind the ice facade ever since that day on Budapest, when he had been sent to kill the infamous Black Widow.

It had been a hell of a shock for both when the bond formed itself in the middle of their fight.

"Do you know how it's like to be unmade?" he asked, trying to focus on the now, and not on how his head had felt when the tip of Loki's staff touched his heart.

How he could actually feel the bond being tested; blocked away, in order to leave him completely under Loki's control. To have nothing but Loki's desires and needs pulsing in his head.

It was as if the staff had removed Natasha as his bondmate and placed Loki instead.

"How did you get it out?"

"I hit your head very hard." Natasha smiled, sitting next to him, closing her eyes. As she did, Clint could feel her love and worry, everything that had been blocked from him for the three days he had been under Loki's spell. It was a dam that had finally opened.

 

*             *             *

 

Steve hadn't planned on following Stark.  Despite what Howard sometimes said, he knew when he wasn't wanted and it was obvious that Tony Stark couldn't stand his presence.

And yet, every time he saw the billionaire, Steve couldn't help but feel that he _had_ to be there to provide moral support and offer advice, should Tony need it, whether the other man wanted it or not.

He supposed part of it was because Tony was Howard's son. If Steve hadn't managed to freeze himself for more than 70 years, he would've probably been around Tony's life as a friendly uncle. Despite the fact that Bucky had been his friend for all his life, when Steve met Howard, they had fit together in a way that a poor kid from Brooklyn and one of the ten wealthiest men in America shouldn't have.

If not for the ice, Steve knew he would've been Howard's best man at his wedding, instead of Obadiah Stane, the man who had tried to kill Howard's son. As things were, Steve hadn't even met Maria Stark. He had seen pictures of the woman, but he couldn't picture her married to his friend; couldn't see her as Howard's bondmate.

Tony, on the other hand, was obviously his father's son. And even if he didn't want Steve's support, he would get it. For what Steve had heard, Howard had spent a lot of time neglecting his son because he had been looking for him under the ice. So Steve owed it to Tony to be there for him now, even if he was older, even if he no longer needed the company.

He found Tony staring at the place where Phil Coulson had fallen. Trying to pretend it didn't affect him, when it obviously did.

"Was he bonded?" Steve asked, trying to start a conversation. The truth was that he hadn't known Agent Coulson very well. Only for brief moments, that had made him slightly uncomfortable since Steve wasn't used to be treated like a celebrity. But there was hidden pain in Stark's eyes that told Steve that he knew Coulson very well. 

"No. There was ah... cellist. I think," Stark answered quickly, and if not for the forced pause, Steve might have believed it.  Stark was hiding something. And Steve would've pried further if it wasn't because the conversation got derailed -as every conversation with Tony Stark did- and they figured out where Loki would be.

There would be time later to talk to Tony Stark about Howard, and to apologize for his rude words before. If nothing else, when Stark had been ready to let the turbine of the helicarrier chop him to pieces while saving everyone on board he proved to Steve that he was a hero, with the armor, or without it.


	9. 8.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The battle for the world starts, and Tony has to make a very hard decision to save everyone

"Sir, the MARK VII is still not ready."

"Then skip the spinning rims, we're on the clock here," Tony said, evening out his breath. He was about to face Loki without the suit, in order to gain some time. He had faced idiots with delusions of grandeur before, but never one who could honestly call himself a god.

Loki, thankfully, seemed to be the kind of villain who liked to monologue. That gave Tony enough time to go to his bar, and change his armor bracelets for the ones ready for Mark VII, before Loki even realized that he was really stalling.

Calling the Avengers by their name felt good, and as he was making the head count, Tony realized that yes, they were a good team, and not just a time-bomb as Bruce had called them. Of course, staying within SHIELD was a bad idea. Bruce wasn't the only one that SHIELD's scientist would love to study, after all.

"I have an army," Loki boasted, without even raising his voice. Oh, Tony had been right on his assessment of the guy. A real diva, no doubt about it. He knew how to milk the moment for all that it was worth. In fact, if he wasn't an unrepentant murderer who had killed two of Tony's best friends, Tony would consider hiring him to do his promotion material.

"We have a Hulk," Tony countered. He still couldn't hear his bondmate's thoughts, but he knew that he was coming. There was no doubt of that.

"Oh, I thought the beast had wandered off." Loki's words angered Tony. They reminded him of the way everyone on SHIELD dismissed Bruce. Yes, he was a brilliant scientist, but who cared... he was one mean word away from becoming a mindless brute.

"You are missing the point. There's no throne, there's no version of this where you come on top," Tony said, walking dangerously close to the Asgardian. He knew that if Bruce was there, or within range of their bond-created telepathy, his bondmate would be livid enough to bring out the Hulk with a blink. And then, he would probably smash Tony for being stupid. "Maybe your army comes, and maybe it's too much for us. But it's all on you. And if we can't protect the Earth, you can be damn well sure we’ll avenge it."

And of course, Loki had to prove him right.

"How are your friends going to have time for me, when they're so busy fighting you?" Tony felt the staff touch the arc reactor and froze. For one incredibly long second he was afraid, that he would end up just like Selvig and Barton and he would try to attack Bruce and the others.

But nothing happened. Instead of the cold that Barton had described to Natasha, Tony could feel the warmth of Bruce's calm inside his head, as if the other man was right there in the room, embracing him. Protecting him from whatever that was Loki's trick.

The Asgardian tried again, confused. It was obvious that he wasn't expecting that to happen.

"This usually works," Loki said, obviously annoyed at the situation. And of course, Tony just had to say the wrong thing, and before he knew what was happening, Loki defenestrated him.

As he was falling down, praying that the Mark VII would reach him in time, he heard Bruce's voice in his head, tentatively calling for him, as if he was on the other end of a particularly bad phone call, quickly becoming afraid as he sensed what was happening to Tony. Just like that, Tony lost all his fear, and as the armor assembled itself around his body, he was ready to fight. After all, his bond-mate had his back.

**_I'm ok, big guy. Where are you?_ **

*          *          *

 

**_I'm ok, big guy. Where are you?_ ** __

Bruce smiled at himself when he heard Tony's voice in his head. For a moment, he had felt a crippling fear that almost threw him off the motorbike he had stolen, as he could practically feel the floor under the wheels disappear and having the absolute certainty that he was going to become nothing but a stain in the asphalt and not even the Other Guy would've able to save him. He felt just as he had back when Stern had managed to lock the Other Guy, and Bruce had jumped out from a helicopter to get him back. He could feel the Other Guy rumbling under his skin, aching to come out, and Bruce would've let him, would've let him to try and reach Tony before he hit the ground, but that desire disappeared as soon as he heard Tony's voice, so fast that for one second he thought it had been just his imagination.

**_Just outside Manhattan, crossing the bridge. The traffic is horrible._ **

**_It's about to get worse,_** Tony sounded angry in his thoughts, but they were still too far away for Bruce to be able to get more out of Tony's brain.  **_Please, hurry up._**

 ** _I'll be there as..._**  Bruce didn't finish the thought as he looked up to see  a strange hole opening up on the sky,  and dozens of smaller figures coming out from it, pouring into the New York' sky. At the distance he was, he couldn't make any details, but one small dot seemed to be going against the current.

_Tony._

**_Right. The Army,_** Tony said in his mind, and the fear gripped Bruce's heart again. It wasn't Tony's fear: for someone who was about to face alone an alien army, Tony was surprisingly calm. It was his and surprisingly, the Other Guy's fear for his Mate's safety. **_I could really use our Hulk._**

Bruce didn't had time to be annoyed at Tony referring to the Other Guy by name, as he was hit with the very recent memory of his bondmate facing the crazy, homicidal god with a mind controlling staff...without his armor. As the Other Guy roared in his head, Bruce realized that for the first time since the accident, he was completely agreeing. They had to protect Tony from himself.

But letting the Other Guy out before he could reach the team was a bad idea. So Bruce calmed himself as best as he could, and kept going forward, towards where he could feel Tony.

 ** _Why did you take off your suit?_** He asked, as the people started stopping all around him. **_Where are the others?_**

**_I think they took the scenic route..._ **

Bruce couldn't answer immediately; as he saw two of the bikers destroy the street right in front of him.  Still, Bruce didn't stop; he swerved to avoid the mob, but kept going forward. He was not going to let Tony alone.

 ** _They don't think you're coming,_** Tony told him in all seriousness. **_I can't wait to see their faces when they see you._**

 ** _For that, you've got to stay in one piece,_** Bruce answered, barely managing to avoid running into a woman who was trying to get away from the invaders. Not that he blamed them. In any other situation, he would've been running too, trying to get as far away as possible from the city in order not to make even more damage.

A car flew towards him, so he leaned under it, barely making it to the other side of the road. It was a battlefield, not all different from the ones that he had seen in South America when he got in the way of the Guerrillas, or in the Middle East, where he had learned the hard way that the Other Guy could easily destroy a village that he was trying to protect.

And yet, Bruce kept going forward, focusing on reaching his bondmate. Focusing on the fact that he needed to help.

"Sir, you can't go there," A police officer tried to stop him, but Bruce ignored him. He could hear the sounds of battle not far away, and knew he was on the right direction to find the rest of the team. And he found them, just standing in the middle of the destruction.

Bruce barely had the chance to register everyone's surprised parties when he felt Tony coming closer. He looked up to see his bondmate being chased by an ugly alien flying dragon.  Inside him, the Other Guy roared, ready to burst out and Bruce smiled.

"That's my secret, Captain," he said, walking as if to meet Tony. To his surprise, the Other Guy was letting him finish. The change was always easier when he didn't fight it, and at this moment, he was actually welcoming it. The Other Guy was far better protecting his bondmate. "I'm always angry."

And then he let the anger swallow him, and Bruce knew no more.

 

*          *          *

 

Hulk smashes the big fish that tried to hurt his Mate, roaring at them.  But Banner is not telling him not to Smash. Not to run. To stay. Protect Mate. Protect City.

Wing Head talks, makes Mate go away. But not far. To fight. Mate shouldn't fight. And then looks at Hulk.

"And Hulk..."  Hulk growls, ready to be hurt. But Wing man smiles as he talks. "Smash!"

Hulk Smashes. Hulk good smashing. All puny aliens who tried to hurt Mate are smashed. But Hulk can't find Mate, because Mate flies around, getting more and more aliens to chase Mate.

Hulk don't like that Mate can get hurt. But he knows Mate has fun. He sees Long Hair smashing things and Mate angry for not smashing, so Hulk smashes instead of Mate.

Then hits Long Hair for making Mate angry, not letting Mate have fun.

Mate likes smashing. So Hulk will let Mate smash. As long as Mate is not hurt.

 

*             *           *

 

Tony knew the exact moment when Bruce's mind became Hulk's mind. It was not so much the wave of _angerpainrage_ that reached his mind, and it wasn't immediate, but in one brief second between Bruce warning him of what was going to happen and actually seeing the Hulk standing in front of the huge whale beast of the Chitauri, the perception from the mind link _changed._

It was still there, now that they were closer, it felt even stronger. But instead of words, what Tony was getting now were images.  Clear images of what Hulk wanted to do, what Hulk was going to do.

Now, more than ever, Tony had proof that his bondmate was not a monster. Because every single thought Hulk had was of protecting him and by extension, those who Tony was protecting. Yes, Hulk was angry -there was anger permeating every image Tony got from the bond- but it wasn't at all like the anger he had felt in the Helicarrier. And, once Captain America gave the thumbs up for "smashing", that anger turned into something closer to glee. Hulk liked being useful.

Oh, yes. Tony was going to have a long, long talk with his bondmate as soon as the battle was over.

Vaguely, he wondered if Bruce remembered what he did as Hulk, but then everything was put on hold when he heard Fury through his communicator.

"Stark, you hear me? You've got a missile flying straight to the city..."

"How long?"  Tony flew away from the fight in order to intercept the bomb. Who had had the bright idea of nuking New York, Tony didn't know, but it only cemented his belief that he just couldn't trust anyone with a military rank to take good decisions. And as time was of essence, there was no other way to deal with the bomb. Even as Natasha was about to close that option for them.

As he managed to change the bomb's trajectory, he tried not to think about Bruce. It was probably a one-way ticket, depending on how far the portal opened, how cold space really was and how the Mark VII would hold. On the other hand, he was pretty sure that Bruce would survive. If Hulk had spat out a bullet, he could survive a bondmate dying. Tony hoped he would.

 ** _It's the only way, Bruce;_** he thought, not sure if Hulk would understand or if Bruce would remember.

"Sir?" JARVIS interrupted, as Tony used the curve of the Stark Tower to gain altitude. "Incoming call from Mr. Hogan."

Tony considered not answering. He _really_ didn't want to hear that Pepper was dead; but on the other hand, it was his last chance to say goodbye to his friend. And record one message for Bruce, in case Bruce survived.

"Patch him through," he ordered, just as he closed on to the open portal. He couldn't recognize any of the stars on the other side. "And hold the call for as long as your systems allow it."

"Tony? We're on our way to New York; Pepper is in a bad shape and..."

"I'm kind of busy right now, Happy, I need you to listen," Tony answered, not really hearing his friend. "If I don't come back, I need you to find Dr. Bruce Banner. I'm pretty sure he's going to be alright even if I'm not... and  then make sure he gets everything that's mine. The company, the trademarks. Everything... everything he needs. If he wants to disappear, help him do so. If anyone comes looking for him, I want every resource of Stark Industries to be used to protect him. And then... tell him I'm sorry. "

Somewhere in the middle of his speech, the call got disconnected and the power went down in the suit. He was completely alone, just watching the mothership of the Chitauri blow up. And yet, Tony couldn't close his eyes. Not because of the breathtaking view that no other human had ever seen, but because he was afraid that if he closed them, he wouldn't be able to open them again.

 

*             *           *

 

Hulk found the puny horn-man hiding. Hulk knew the building from Mate's head. And knew what the puny horn-man did to Mate. Hulk saw it in his head, Mate falling out the window without the suit.

Hulk smashed the puny god twice for that.

There were more puny aliens shooting at Hulk outside. For a moment, Hulk felt Mate sad, but Hulk couldn't find him, couldn't feel him.

Hulk roared, wanted the aliens to bring Mate back, or else.

Then Hulk saw Mate, falling down from the sky, not stopping. Hulk ran, as fast as he could, to catch Mate. Hulk needed to touch mate, but the suit was in the way.  Hulk hands too big to help, but Long Hair and Wing man were there, touched Mate.

Mate's shiny chest was not shining. There were no images coming from Mate's head.

Hulk roared, all his anger, all his pain. Even puny Banner was crying inside his head. If Mate didn't wake up...

But Mate opened his eyes, started talking.  Mate liked to talk. And Hulk smiled.

_Because Mate was safe._


	10. 9.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Loki captured, it's time to start understanding the bond between Tony and Bruce

"But after, shawarma?" Tony joked; trying to hide the fact that he wasn't very sure he could get up. Rogers seemed to pick up on it, since he held up a hand to help him steady himself before Hulk could get closer.

Not that Tony was afraid of Hulk. On the contrary; now that he had seen Hulk's mind, now that he knew with certainty that the only reason why Hulk lashed out at the world was because the world always tried to hurt him- and again, that said a lot of Bruce's mental state even before the Hulk made an appearance- there was no place where Tony would felt safer than next to his mate, green or not. But he knew that if Hulk got in his head that Tony needed to be kept safe from the other Avengers, they could hurt him. So, just as Hulk protected him, Tony had to protect Hulk.

That thought was rewarded with the mental image of Hulk, roaring at everything. Tony guessed it was Hulk's way of saying 'nothing can hurt Hulk'. And, after seeing his green bondmate shrug off most of the alien's firepower, Tony couldn't really dispute that sentiment.

"We still have to secure my brother," Thor said. And apparently that was exactly the wrong thing to say next to Hulk, as Tony barely got a glimpse of his bondmate beating the Asgardian as if he were a ragdoll, right in the middle of the living room that he had just finished furnishing, before Hulk jumped up to get back to said living room quite intent on thoroughly smashing Loki again.

"I think we better hurry," Tony said, smiling at the protectiveness of his bondmate. Intermixed with Loki's punishment, he also had seen his own fall, through Hulk's eyes. Tony had scared him and that was why Loki had been in the wrong end of Hulk's anger. "If you want to get Loki back to Asgard in one piece."

The suit's energy was gone completely, Tony didn't even had Jarvis with him, so he and Rogers had to use the guest's elevator -because there had been enough people already in Tony's _private_ one- while Thor flew up to reach Hulk. All the while, Tony concentrated on sending the most calm, quiet images he could think of, in order to insure that they wouldn't find Hulk trashing Thor just because Thor wouldn't let Hulk kill Loki.

Not that Tony thought Hulk was capable of killing the Asgardian. After all, he seemed quite intent on preserving life, for what Tony had seen.

They got to the penthouse just in time to see Loki try to get up from where Hulk had practically grafted him to the floor.  Tony smiled at the destruction, and decided right then that he was going to keep it like that. Maybe add a glass on top so he could walk over the silhouette of the fallen demigod. He wanted to believe that Phil and Pepper would like that.

"If it's all the same to you," Loki said, as though he had finally realized that his plan was a complete failure and he had no escape. "I'll have that drink now."

"We can't take him to the helicarrier now," Natasha said, still pointing the glowing 'Stick of Destiny' at Loki's heart. "We have nowhere to put him."

"I'm of no danger to you now," Loki said, placating. And Tony lifted his eyebrows as Hulk growled behind him. The Asgardian was good with words. The last thing they needed was to start _listening_ to him. "I won't run away."

"I vote that we gag him," Tony lifted his arm, pointing the repulsor beam at Loki. He had no energy to actually shoot, but Loki didn't need to know that. "In fact, I got just the thing downstairs."

"Unless you've also got a Hulk-grade cage down there too, we’ll still have to keep an eye on him," Steve said, confusing Tony. It was not the same 'I'm in charge' tone he used during the battle, but a more patronizing tone. One that was quite familiar only, at that moment, Tony couldn't put his finger on why. "The shawarma will have to wait."

"I've got chains that can hold anything," Tony bristled. He _really_ didn't like when Steve Rogers second guessed him. "And we've got Point Break's hammer. Not even Jolly Green could lift it."

"No one who is unworthy can lift Mnjolnir," Thor agreed, once again ignoring Tony's nickname. Good, that meant Thor could take a joke and would probably accept the invitation to stay on the Avengers without SHIELD's interference.

"So, problem solved. We can stash him in the closet, go get some shawarma, and then hand him to SHIELD," As he spoke, and sensing that Hulk was starting to get restless, Tony decided to get out of the armor to prove that the battle was over.  They had won. There was no need for more arguing about it. "We deserve some rest, old man."

"Loki will be judged for his crimes in Asgard," Thor stated, and out of the corner of his eyes, Tony saw Loki's expression shift just for a second into actual fear. So the man who had killed his two closest friends didn't want to face his peers? That was reason enough for Tony to send him there.

"No argument from me there," Tony agreed, walking right to Hulk, who was looking at him puzzled. As if the big guy wasn't expecting Tony to come closer. "But you'll have to take that to Fury."

 

*             *            *

 

_"Unless you've also got a Hulk-grade cage down there too, we will still have to keep an eye on him, the shawarma will have to wait."_

Steve felt bad by reminding Tony that they had responsibilities. He knew that the billionaire was an adult, who understood about priorities. He had just witnessed how Tony Stark had almost sacrificed himself in order to save New York, and shrugged it as if it was not big deal. But even so, Steve couldn't stop himself from reprimanding Stark over his apparent food obsession.

Not that Stark cared.

But before Steve could object to the idea of tying Loki up and just _leave_ , Stark did something even more stupid by taking off his armor with Hulk still on the room. And yes, Hulk had helped them, despite everyone's misgivings (Everyone's but Stark's, but Steve didn't understand that), but he had also attacked Thor in midbattle. And the only one of the group who had a _chance_ of surviving if Hulk turned against them was Thor.

"Stark, what are you..." Steve started to say, when Agent Romanov stopped him.  She didn't seem worried, not even when Hulk raised his hand as if to hit Stark and...

_Patted his head._

While Stark smiled, as if one of Hulk's fingers wasn't as wide as his neck. And then, to Steve's surprise, he reached up to touch Hulk _tenderly._

"I know, big guy," Stark was saying in a tone that _wasn't_ at all like the snarky tone, so similar to Howard’s; that he used with everyone. "But I swear we're safe. You can rest a bit now."

And to Steve's ever growing surprise, Hulk _smiled_ at that and he seemed to deflate, losing muscle, until in his place was Dr. Banner, smiling sheepishly, completely naked.

"I think we're going to have to make one more stop before the shawarma," Agent Barton teased. "Unless the place doesn't have a shirt and shoes policy."

As Agent Romanov hid her grin behind her hand, Thor offered his cape so Banner would have something to cover himself with. But Steve wasn't really paying attention to that. His mind was focused on the way in which Stark hadn't let go of Hulk's hand as it turned into Banner's. Even now, he was still holding it, as if he was afraid that Banner was going to run away at any second.

_Oh. Oh!_

He was still reeling at the realization so he didn't really complained when Agents Romanov and Barton guided him, Thor and Loki into a separate elevator while Stark and Banner stayed behind.

 

*             *            *

 

Bruce accepted Thor's cape to cover himself, at the same time as he was reeling from the effects of the transformation. It wasn't the first time he had brought out the Other Guy willingly, but it was the first time that the Other Guy went back inside without going to sleep first.

 ** _Hulk. He doesn't like it when you call him Other Guy,_** Tony told him through the bond and Bruce was so relieved of hearing his bondmate again that he just wanted to hug him and not let go until the next alien invasion.

But the others were there, and he wasn't really ready to tell them about the bond. While it seemed that the Other Guy... Hulk... had fought at their side, Bruce still didn't know them, or trusted them, enough to share that information.

"What's this about shawarma?" He asked, still standing as close as he dared to Tony, as close as he thought he could without it looking odd. **_And you know this because you had a long, heart to heart talk with him?_**

"Clothes first," Tony pointed to the elevator behind him. "Then shawarma." **_Don't worry; I'll stay in the living room. No peeking._**

Bruce blinked, realizing that he actually _had_ expected Tony to peek. And perhaps do something more. The Pull and the bond didn't guarantee romantic and sexual feelings, but most bonded pairs ended up together in a relationship.

And the more he thought about it, even if they had only known each other for two days, Bruce realized that he wouldn't mind spending the rest of his life with Tony Stark.

As Bruce realized that, a flood of images came tumbling into his brain. He could see the huge Chitauri Whale in front of him, and Tony shooting at it. He could see the battle, not in distorted images, as the usual memories from Hulk were, the few ones he got from time to time... Now, the images were as clear as his own memories, as if he had been right there, in the middle of the battle. He even felt some satisfaction from hitting Thor.

Until he remembered _how_ they won the battle.

 ** _You pushed a nuclear bomb through the portal._** To his credit, Bruce managed to wait for that particular argument until they were alone, inside the private elevator.

 ** _You remember that? I thought you had problems remembering what happened when you were your greener half._**  Tony smiled, not even pausing to question the fact that they preferred the silence between them.

 ** _You didn't know you were going to survive,_** Bruce pressed on, not letting Tony distract him. **_You expected not to come back._**

**_I came back, that's the important thing._ **

**_You were expecting to die, and me to go on without you._ **

Tony didn't answer, instead turned to look at him. Bruce looked up, realizing for the first time that he had leant in to rest his head on Tony's shoulder.

**_Your eyes are very green right now._ **

**_We're very angry at you right now._**  It was true, too. He and Hulk completely agreeing on something was another first. And while he didn't doubt Tony's word about his eyes, he didn't feel any danger of Hulk coming out to play. It was as if the big guy was letting him deal with their bondmate now.

Tony opened his mouth, probably to give a witty retort. But Bruce could _feel_ the insecurity rolling off his bondmate, the absolute _certainty_ Tony felt that Bruce would be better if their relationship was completely platonic, since _Bruce_ obviously would be much better without him... and that was too much for Bruce and Hulk. He couldn't let Tony keep feeling like that, not when he had just realized that it was very much not platonic.

So he leant closer to just touch his lips to Tony's, to make Tony see the truth of his feelings; but as their lips brushed together, he realized that that wouldn't be enough.

 

_It would never be enough._


	11. 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team goes to get shawarma, Tony and Bruce talk and Steve finds himself with a lot of feelings about Tony and Bruce's bond.

"Should we wait for Stark and Banner before we tie Loki up?" Steve asked, as the elevator stopped in one of the basement levels.

"I don't think they'll be here any time soon," Agent Barton answered, pushing Loki into the workshop. "Which is a problem, since we don't know where he keeps the gags or the chains."

"Why shouldn't they be here? Why didn't we all take the same transportation?" Thor looked as confused as Steve felt.

"We would've been very uncomfortable on the same lift," Agent Romanov agreed.

"It is _that_ new?" Barton whistled, impressed. "I imagine that staying with them in the Helicarrier wasn't fun then... How did Fury take it? It's never easy when it's starting."

"How did Fury take what?" Thor asked, frowning.

"It's wasn't like that in the Helicarrier," Steve shook his head. "I didn't even notice until now."

"There's no way it took three days for them to realize it," Barton shook his head. "The maximum time for a bond to create itself is two hours, isn't it?"

"What's a bond?" Thor tried again, and only then Steve noticed that Loki also looked confused. Which was quite surprising, since ever since the moment they had fought in Germany Loki always seemed to be on top of things. "And why that means that Banner and Stark will not be joining us soon?"

"Mr. Stark keeps the chains for the forklifts in the third door to the right, Mrs. Romanov," a voice with an elegant British accent interrupted before anyone could answer Thor.

"Thank you, JARVIS," Romanov didn't seem faced at that, but then Steve remembered that at one point, she had been Stark's secretary. She probably knew better than anyone else in the team how Stark Tower worked. "Will you let us know when Mr. Stark and Mr. Banner join us?"

"Of course, Mrs. Romanov," the voice, JARVIS, answered. Barton was already opening the door with the promised chains that indeed looked strong enough to hold even the Hulk. Although Thor still looked confused, he pushed his still compliant brother inside, and then tied him carefully with the chains, around Mjnolir.

It wasn't until the door of the garage was firmly closed and there was at least a barrier of bullet proof glass between them and Loki when Thor spoke again.

"You didn't want my brother to hear your explanation," Thor said, once they were back at the doors of the elevator, waiting for Stark and Banner.

"It's something somewhat private for us on Earth," Romanov agreed. "I'm pretty sure Tony and Bruce wouldn't like us to discuss it in front of Loki."

"I'm not really sure they'd like us to discuss it with anyone yet," Barton looked at the private elevator door, then back at them. "We could use a different example. Me and..."

"Yes," Romanov interrupted. "Okay.  Did anyone in New México ever talk about following the Pull, Thor?"

"Darcy and Jane mentioned something about it, but never explained what they meant."

Steve looked at his teammates, feeling lost. Everyone knew what the Pull was, because parents explained it to children as young as six.  However, neither Barton nor Romanov seemed willing to talk about it. Maybe it was because they were bonded. It was obvious, now that Steve thought about it, on the way they fought, and how the Black Widow had been restless until Hawkeye was back on the Helicarrier.

"It's like a road in your head," he said, deciding that, as the only one unbounded on the team, he was probably the only one who would be willing to explain it completely without going into too much personal information. "You just follow it all your life, until the day when you reach the middle, and the person who was walking in the opposite direction. That person is your other half. Someone who knows how you're feeling, even without talking, and who will stand by you, no matter what. And if you die after the bond is created... they'll die with you."

"Like a Shield-brother?" Thor considered Steve's words. Then he looked at them, as if he was considering something. "But you had no one with you in the battle. Stark had Banner, the Widow had the Hawk... Where is your bondmate?"

Steve looked down, trying not to show how much Thor's words affected him.

"Some people are unlucky," he said, trying not to think about Peggy, Bucky, Howard, or everything he had lost by flying Hydra's ship into the ice. "I never found my bondmate, and by now, she must have died without me."

 

*             *            *

 

**_Don't worry; I'll stay in the living room. No peeking._ **

That was what Tony had thought to Bruce when he promised more clothing, but so far, he had seen almost every part of Bruce's body. It made his jealousy flare when he realized that so had most of Manhattan. Maybe it was time to start working on a new material that would stretch to fit Hulk, and stay on when Bruce was back.

And it wasn't that he didn't want to peek. To watch.  Whoever said that a bond didn't come with sexual attraction had either never bonded themselves, or didn't had a bond as strong as Bruce and Tony's.

And yet, Tony couldn't... _wouldn't_ force Bruce to stay with him. After all, Bruce had had a girlfriend, according to SHIELD's files. Now that they knew that Tony could absorb some of Bruce's anger, maybe Bruce could go back to her.

 ** _You pushed a nuclear bomb through the portal._**  Bruce's thoughts interrupted him. Tony almost answered verbally, worried that Bruce had seen what had been going to his mind seconds before, until he realized that doing that would look as if he had something to hide. And he really didn't want to hide anything from his bond mate.

 ** _You remember that? I thought you had problems to remember what happened when you were your greener half._**  

**_You didn't know you were going to survive. You expected not to come back._ **

**_I came back, that's the important thing._ **

**_You were expecting to die, and me to go on without you._ **

Tony looked at Bruce, surprised at their closeness. Bruce was resting his head on his shoulder, looking exhausted. Not that Tony blamed him: the battle had been too long. And he had seen how the Chitauri tried _everything_ to slow Hulk down.

**_Your eyes are very green right now._ **

**_We're very angry at you right now._**  

 _We_. Tony wanted to smile, because it was the first time that Bruce acknowledged Hulk as part of himself, but at the same time, he couldn't because it only proved his fears. _He_ made both Bruce and Hulk angry, _he_ made them look tired. And despite that they were bondmates, Tony was pretty sure that Bruce would be better off with someone else. Even if it killed him to think that, he couldn't believe that Bruce would be happy settling for someone like him.

It was then when Bruce kissed him.

At first it was only a brush; lips barely touching lips, questioning, as if to give Tony time to pull away, even in the limited space of the private elevator.  Tony didn't retreat, didn't want to retreat, and just stood there, wondering if he was dreaming.

Which was when Bruce bit gently his lower lip, teasing Tony's lips open in order to deepen the kiss.

Tony took a small step backwards, plastering himself to the lift wall, but Bruce didn't stop the kiss. He followed him pressing his body against Tony's, so that Tony was pinned to the wall by Bruce's smaller frame.

Smaller _naked_ frame, as his mind reminded him once Tony remembered how to think.

Not that he minded.

He was caressing Bruce's back, and had no idea how they had gotten there. Usually, Tony made the first move, he was the one with the plan and who guided his partners where he wanted them to be. Not so with Bruce, who was very clearly taking control. 

**_Bruce..._ ** ****

One of the big advantages of not having to talk, was that their pauses to breathe didn't have to be very long Or at least, it seemed that to Tony, as he felt Bruce caressing his chest, and stopping right as his thumb touched the edge of the arc reactor.

Exactly when he had lost his shirt, he had no idea.

 ** _We should stop..._**  Bruce thought, but as he was kissing Tony's neck, he didn't seem keen on following his own advice. And Tony moaned, as Bruce kept caressing the edge of the arc reactor,  tracing the path where the skin gave way to metal. **_You almost died._**

 ** _I came back,_** Tony repeated, capturing Bruce's mouth again. Once again, he marveled at his own stupidity when he had been trying to run away from the bond, when he had been convinced he could somehow live without his bondmate.

That he could be happy with just a friendly relationship with him. Without touching, without kissing, without...

The elevator stopped, making Bruce stop and move away from Tony. Thor's cape hung loosely around his hips, and Tony hoped that the security cameras were taping because it was one of the sexiest things he had seen in his life. And that was counting the 12 Maxim models waking up in his bed.

And wow, Bruce in his bed. That was something he needed to see, now.

 ** _Clothes first,_** Bruce was keeping his distance, but he was smiling, teasing. And Tony was surprised to find that he actually liked that, that Bruce wasn't following his lead, like every single one of his previous partners; even if it meant that Bruce would've going out to eat instead of staying where they were in order to get to know each other better. **_Then food. And then we can come back._**

**_Is it strictly necessary?_ **

**_If we don't hurry, they'll come looking for us._ **

 And yes, that was a good point. Tony didn't really want anyone seeing Bruce the way he was seeing him now. Which brought him again to the idea of pants. Pants that stayed on, and didn't fall down when Bruce needed to let out some steam.

 ** _You're thinking too much._** Bruce came closer, to kiss Tony's jaw gently. **_The faster we do this, the faster we can come back... and then..._**

Bruce thoughts trailed off, but the mental image they were creating stayed quite clear on Tony's mind.

Tony had never been quicker in finding something to wear, and just threw Bruce a pair of black pants and a black shirt that Tony sometimes used for press conferences. They were a tad too big, but just barely, and they made Tony think on how Bruce would look after a whole night together, wearing those same clothes.

**_Shawarma can wait._ **

**_Maybe... but our teammates can't._** Bruce answered, as he stepped back into the elevator. As he did, he grabbed Tony's shirt and pulled him into a new possessive kiss that had Tony going weak at the knees.

Yes, they couldn't come back fast enough.

 

*             *            *

 

As the doors of the elevator opened, Steve was ready to ask Stark and Banner what had taken them so long. Finding a shirt and pants shouldn't have been so difficult for someone who probably had a different outfit for every day of the year.

However when the two men walked out the elevator, words died on his throat.

It was obvious that they _hadn't_ spent all that time looking for clothes. While Dr. Banner was dressed again, he looked disheveled; not from dressing in a hurry, no. Steve had seen Bucky in a similar state after being with one of his girlfriends, more than once.  There was a bruise forming on Stark's neck, that had obviously not being caused by the fight, not the way Stark was looking at Banner.

"You couldn't wait until after we had dinner?" Barton asked, teasing. Steve turned to look at him, shocked. Because while yes, it was not _strange_ to see two men bonded to each other, it was almost unheard of two have them make the bond... _intimate._   And while Steve understood that the world had changed while he was on the ice, that many things that weren't done back on his time were accepted, and he even _agreed_ with the changes since it hadn't made much sense to have bondmates not be together just because they didn't happened to be opposite genders; even if all that was true, Steve's stomach still turned on its own.

Because _who did Bruce Banner think he was? He was not good enough to be Anthony's bondmate._

"You have a problem with this, capsicle?" Stark was looking at him, his eyes as guarded as they had been when they had fought on the helicarrier.

"Not at all." Steve forced himself to answer, because he _really_ didn't have anything against them being together. It was not his business, whatever Banner and Stark decided to do.

But that didn't change the fact that his stomach was coiling itself in irrational anger that just confused him. Steve had never had a problem with the soldiers he had met who had male bondmates. When Peggy had told him that her bondmate was a woman, and that they wanted to bond properly, Steve had been the first one to congratulate them. There was no reason for Steve to feel angry at Banner.

Steve blinked, as he tried to smile. The realization was quite startling. He wasn't _jealous_. He had no interest at all in the insufferably arrogant Anthony Stark, much less in Banner.

But at the same time, part of him just hated the idea of them together, and Steve just couldn't shake the feeling that Banner was simply _not good enough for a Stark._

*             *            *

 

The shawarma place had been incredibly lucky during the attack. While the floor was covered in dust and debris, the windows were shattered and a couple of tables were destroyed, the owner and staff were unharmed and they were more than happy to serve food to the Avengers. They had seen Iron Man fighting the aliens just outside the place before flying with the nuke on his back, and didn't accept Stark's credit card, no matter how much he insisted.

Clint had tried to make small talk with the newly bonded pair, and Natasha smiled at the attempts of her bondmate.  She didn't blame him for his curiosity: usually a bond took a while to form. Yes, as soon as people met, they knew they were destined to be together, but it took time to reach the level of trust and openness needed in order to complete the ceremony.

Bruce and Tony seemed to have skipped the process; Clint couldn't know it, since he hadn't been there for their first meeting, but Natasha had seen the spark. The exact moment when they had touched and realized that yes, they were meant to be together.

She had wanted to see how that unfolded, how it changed Bruce's disposition and Tony's arrogance.

Instead, 24 hours later, they were completely unchanged except for the fact that they moved together like old bonded pairs did.  Even closer than Natasha and Clint.

Bruce had sat first, the exertion of the transformation and the fight finally catching up with him. And then Tony followed suit, leaning back on his chair, and putting his feet up on Bruce's right. No one commented on it, except that it seemed to make Steve increasingly uncomfortable.

Natasha sighed inwardly. If that was going to be a problem, it was better for it to come forward now, when the team had just been formed than later. But Steve didn't say anything, not even looked in their direction once that they were seated.

Clint put his feet up her chair, and she smiled, basking in the warmth of his support. Their connection had only been muted for less than three days, but it was too much. She had missed him so much.  The battle right afterwards had been too tiring, and now, she just wanted to crawl into Clint's arms.

Except that they weren't going to have the luxury of that.  Once they went back to the helicarrier, the "don't ask, don't tell" would be back on place and it would be months before they could reinforce their bond again.

"Don't even think about it," Stark suddenly said, looking at Banner, who hadn't said anything. "You all are going to come with me to the Tower. I've got place to spare."

"I have my own apartment," Steve mumbled, so low that Stark probably didn't hear it.

"I'd like to keep an eye on my brother," Thor mumbled between bites of his fourth shawarma.

"Well, I don't see where Shield could keep him now, so the Tower is it." Tony was grinning, but it was probably because Bruce's hand had found its way to the billionaire's leg and was stroking it in the same way one would stroke a cat.

"Even if Fury won't like it," Bruce continued, between bites.

Natasha frowned as she finished her shawarma. Something was odd about the way Bruce and Tony behaved, and she wanted to find out what it was.


	12. 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bruce and Tony finally get to spend some time alone with no pressing matters like alien invasions or crazy gods. Steve, on the other hand, still is very confused about what he feels. And Stark Tower gets an unexpected visitor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay, but I reached the point that I had written for the kinkmeme. I'm still writing pretty fast for my standarts so next chapters should be about once a week more or less.
> 
> (Also, well, kudos to everyone who figured out the Steve pairing. Now it's official, as you saw the heading change, but still, you guys are hard to surprise)

The streets were even emptier as they left the shawarma place to return to Stark Tower.  They walked in silence, Clint and Natasha, close enough to hold hands but not even touching, Thor, sullen and quiet, which was strange for the Thunder God but understandable since it was his brother who had caused the whole mess.  Tony and Bruce walked behind him, and Tony was happy to feel the laughter of his bondmate inside his head, as they remembered the owner almost fainting when he saw the Avengers coming in to eat.

Behind them, Captain America scowled.

Now, Tony didn't have eyes on the back of his head to see that. He didn't need them. The glare of the symbol of America was strong enough by itself. And one didn't need to be a genius to know what was bothering the Capcicle.

Despite their initial conflicts, Tony knew that he and Rogers had started to sort of work through their differences after Loki's attack on the helicarrier. They had worked well together during the fight to defend New York. But it had taken one look at him and Bruce coming out of the lift, and his whole demeanor had changed.

 ** _I don't think the symbol of American freedom approves of us._**  Tony laughed in his head, bumping Bruce's shoulder lightly. And in the corner of his eye he could see Steve frown for just one second, just as he expected.

 ** _You think Captain America is homophobic?_** Bruce sounded dubious. Not that Tony blamed him. Yes, Captain Rogers came from a different time, true. But he was so fundamentally _nice_ that it was hard to remember that there had been a lot of changes in society since then.

 ** _Either that, or he really dislikes us_** , Tony smiled and, lightly, brushed his hand against Bruce's.

Behind them, Steve stopped cold.

"My apartment is the other way. If I want to sleep tonight, I better go now."  Everyone stopped to look at him, confused.

"I said you could spend the night at the tower." Unconsciously, Tony grabbed Bruce's hand, gripping it tightly. And once again, in the darkness, he could see the shadow of disapproval cross the Captain's eyes. He had seen that same look in his father, more than once.

 ** _What do you think now?_** He asked Bruce, who just tightened his own grip as an answer.

"I need to see if everyone is safe there," the Captain insisted, looking everywhere except at Tony and Bruce's hands. And then, before anyone could say anything to make him change his mind he turned around and left.

"What's up with him?" Clint asked, and Tony hoped he could answer. But until he talked to the Captain, it was better to leave his suspicions to himself and Bruce.

 ** _He'll come around._** Bruce looked at him, smiling slightly.  To Tony's surprise, even as Bruce didn't move closer, he could feel Bruce’s lips on his own, Bruce's arms around his shoulders, and how Bruce deepened the kiss, so deep and sensual that for one moment Tony thought he was back at the elevator.

Only the fact that he still could see Bruce smiling at him made Tony realize that it had only happened in his brain.

"Let's go to sleep," he managed to say, his voice hoarse as if they had really kissed right then. "I'm too tired to think right now."

Clint and Thor grunted in agreement, but Natasha was still studying him. Not that Tony cared right then. He still had to get Bruce in bed.

 

*             *           *

 

 **_Shower._ ** __

Bruce didn't even question when Tony led him to his room, after showing Thor, Natasha and Clint where the guest rooms were. But as soon as he saw the bed, and got inkling on what Tony had in mind for them, he decided that a shower was high on the list of priorities.

Because as much as he wanted to taste Tony all over, he still had the dirt of half of New York sticking to his skin.  And he didn't want to know what kind of grime Tony picked up inside the suit, especially when he traveled to the other edge of the universe.

**_Bed?_ **

**_Shower._ **

**_Together?_ ** __

Bruce smiled at the idea. Sure, he wanted to get clean, and he was starting to feel every single one of the buildings the other guy had destroyed falling on his own shoulders, but the temptation of finally seeing Tony naked was too much even for his own control.

**_Race you._ **

Bruce didn't really noticed who got to the shower first, didn't even stopped to admire the huge bathtub in Tony's floor. What mattered was that, as soon as the water hit their bodies, they were kissing again. 

It was a slow kiss, as both were tired. Just another reassurance that both had survived the battle, that they were still together, that they had found each other. 

 ** _Sex in the bathtub is far more entertaining than in the shower._** Tony was leering at him, but Bruce could feel that, behind the lust and desire, there was a warm feeling that ran far deeper.

It startled Bruce, because it was not new. It was old, and familiar. He had felt it more than once, when he was alone in the middle of the desert, when he was in the Antarctica...warmth that had accompanied him even as he tried to put a gun to his head. Tony had always been there.

 ** _How is this possible?_** He asked, grabbing the soap when it became obvious that Tony was still not thinking about getting clean. However, at his bondmate's pout, instead of bringing the soap to his own skin, he decided to change tactics, and started to soap Tony's shoulders. **_We met two days ago... the bond should've created two days ago, and yet it feels like..._**

 ** _Years?_**  Tony agreed, taking the soap from Bruce's hands to reciprocate. Tony's hands on his chest made Bruce shiver and smile. Even as Tony _was_ really helping him get the dirt off, his bondmate seemed to know exactly where to linger in order to make Bruce _want_ much more. **_I've got a theory about that._**

 ** _You too?_**  Bruce had many theories about their bond. And as he started thinking about them, he just held Tony closer to him, to caress his back under the warm water that was doing wonders to wash away all the worries of the day. **_And you don't worry about it?_**

 ** _I refuse to think something like this is bad._** Tony kissed him deeply at the same time he poured shampoo on Bruce's head. Bruce could feel the long fingers of his bondmate massaging his scalp, and he moaned into Tony’s mouth.

**_It's not fair that you keep distracting me..._ **

Tony didn't answer, just sort of mumbled against Bruce's mouth. **_If we don’t keep talking, I can't guarantee I'll stay awake for more fun._**

And, behind that thought, so fast that Bruce could've sworn that he had imagined it, there was a sense of loss, longing, and fear. Fear of being alone, of Bruce going away.

_Tony thought he was going to leave him._

                                                                                                                                             **_NOT LEAVING MATE!_**

Bruce blinked against the sudden fury of the Other Guy, and tried to calm himself. They were both too exhausted for the Hulk to come out to play again that soon, and yet, Bruce could feel him grumbling just under his skin.

_We're not leaving Tony._

And as to prove it to the three of them, Bruce captured Tony's mouth again in a possessive, violent kiss. A kiss, that without the need of the bond, would let Tony know that no, Bruce wasn't planning on going anywhere without him, ever again.

 

*             *            *

 

The apartment that SHIELD had provided for Steve was cold. Or maybe it was Steve, who had always felt a little cold ever since waking up in SHIELD's facility.

For one moment, Steve wondered if he should've accepted Stark's offer to stay with the others at the Tower. If nothing else, the central heating in that monstrosity had to be better than the apartment. But for the first time in many months, he felt tired enough to sleep and he wanted to do so in his own bed.

Away from Anthony Stark and the memories that he brought to him. Away from the name Stark, and all the feelings that the name invoked.

Once, Peggy had joked with Steve that he didn't know how to run away but he hadn't seen it as a joke. The truth was that Steve had been running away since he had woken up.  Away from his memories, and the guilt that kept eating at him. Guilt for Bucky's death, for being alive when so many good men had died fighting the war while he slept safely under the ice.

But most importantly, he was running away from his dreams.

Because when he closed his eyes, he didn't see those men and women. He didn't remember the battlefield or the war. He saw someone who held him, who stood with him and assured him that things would find a way to sort themselves. He didn't remember the face of that someone when he was awake, but the end result was the same.

When he dreamed, he was happy. And Steve wasn't sure he deserved to be happy.

Now, however, he was tired enough that he hoped he wouldn't dream. 

Through his bedroom window he could still see Stark Tower, dominating almost the whole skyline. Despite the damage, it was still lit up. Whatever Stark had done, it had withstood the invasion where other power sources hadn't. 

Somewhere inside that building, Stark and Bruce were getting ready to sleep. Perhaps something more, if what Steve had seen was true.

Once again, he fought the wave of disapproval that curled around his stomach. It was absolutely irrational, he knew that. If anything, _Banner_ had proven to be a better man than Stark.

The thought made him feel nauseous, which made no sense. He didn't _like_ Stark, and yet, even thinking that made him feel as if he was insulting his own brother.

It made no sense.

Steve closed the binders of the window, muting the glare of the Tower enough that, when he closed his eyes to sleep, he could pretend it wasn't there.

 

*             *           *

 

_"Fondue, Steve? Even after all this years, you're still hung on that?"_

_They were in a small French restaurant in London, next to the bar where Steve had formed the Howling Commandos and Peggy had told him that she had found her bondmate.  Steve was wearing his old army uniform, the one he actually preferred over the blue, red and white one, while Howard was wearing the same shirt and tie he had been wearing when Howard had given him his shield. He only looked a couple of years older than the last time they had seen each other.  Not at all like the few pictures had he seen of the older Howard._

_"I'm dreaming, right?"  Steve asked, confused.  Outside, he could see signs of the modern world, but inside the restaurant, it was as if time had frozen with him. "Why am I dreaming about you?"_

_"Excellent question," Howard agreed, smiling. It was a smile very similar to Stark's, but warmer. "But I'm afraid I have answered it too many times already, my friend."_

_"I've dreamt of this before?"  Steve looked at the bubbling cheese in front of him. He had only had fondue once in his life with Howard; between missions in Normandy, after Bucky's death. Howard had gotten into the habit of dropping by unannounced to the battlefield, ostensibly to pick up the weapons that Steve and the Commandos managed to recover from Hydra.  But that day had been different, as Howard had been there just for Steve. As if he knew that Steve would need a friend._

_This felt like that._

_"Sometimes, you let me pick the menu." Howard laughed, as he drank his wine. "And I'm grateful for that. After all this time, I would've gotten sick of fondue."_

_"How many times?" Steve pressed. It felt important to know. How many times had his subconscious summoned his old friend just to make him feel better in this new world?_

_"Does it really matter?" Howard grabbed a piece of bread, staring at it as if he didn't want to look Steve in the eye. "Are we going to have this argument every night for another seventy years?"_

_"I didn't dream when I was under the ice," Steve said, feeling incredibly stupid, a normal feeling around all Stark men apparently.  And yet, he couldn't shake the feeling that what was being said was **important**._

_"I looked for you, you know that." Howard sounded ashamed. "I could feel you, and I knew you were waiting for me. But then, I tell you this every night."_

_"Every night?"_

_"Every night when you actually go to sleep. You might be a supersoldier, Steve, but you're still human. Sleep deprivation is not fun, I can tell you that."_

_"You didn't sleep when you were looking for me. Why did you waste so much of your life for me? You could've spent it with your wife... with your son..."_

_"I couldn't. Not while you were out there." Howard's eyes looked older now, sadder. And Steve wanted to ease that sadness, because now he knew that he had caused it. "And my reason doesn't matter, not really. Even if I told you, you're going to forget as soon as you wake up."_

_"I met your son." Steve changed the subject, sensing that Howard wasn't feeling comfortable with the conversation. Even if it was just a dream, even if he was going to forget, he wanted Howard to smile at him. Just once. "He's a good man."_

_"Is he? I was under the impression you don't like him very much." And now Howard was smiling, like when Steve had told him about his confusion about Peggy or when they had been testing some of Howard's inventions for the Commandos. A happy smile._

_So Steve told Howard all about meeting Tony, about the Iron Man suit, and how his son had saved the Helicarrier, all the while glossing over their fight, the ugly things he had said. The fact that Tony had almost died._

_And despite himself, in his bed, he smiled too. In dreams, he was happy. In dreams, he was at peace._

*             *           *

 

If there was one thing that Jane Foster never did, was quit.

She hadn't quit when they told her that leaving med school because of the Pull was stupid, that she would never become an astrophysicist and that it was better if she just stayed a nurse.

She hadn't quit when she realized that the Pull she kept feeling was not pointing her towards anyone, but towards the sky. Instead, she began writing to every single scientist that had studied the Pull, trying to figure out if it was possible to be bonded to an ideal, a concept, rather than a person. Everyone had told her she was wrong, but back then, it had been the only explanation as to why the only thing that called to her were the stormy skies.

When she met Thor, she understood that a bit better, but understanding didn't come with an easy solution. No, she had to be bonded to someone from a different planet, who didn't even _feel_ the Pull, who left her without even a second glance. And yet, she didn't give up on finding him.

No. Jane didn't quit, ever.

Which was why she was standing in front of the private elevator of Stark Industries, pointing a screwdriver to the ceiling.

"I don't care that Mr. Stark is busy," she said. "Unless there's another alien invasion we don't know about, it's important that I talk to him!"

"Mr. Stark is not receiving visits at this moment." One had to give credit where credit was due, if Jane hadn't known about JARVIS before hand, she would've thought she was talking to a real person.  So far, he had managed to be as frustrating as one.

"I _don't_ care," Jane insisted.  "This is _important!_ I think he would like to know what's wrong with his girlfriend!"

"You can make an appointment, Ms. Foster," the AI repeated, relentlessly. "Mr. Stark doesn't see anyone without an appointment."

"I _know_ that! But the one who makes the appointments happen is Ms.  Potts! And unless Stark has invented something to communicate with people in a coma, I _need_ to speak with him!" Jane was reaching the end of her patience. "Now open the door, or we will find out if an astrophysicist with a screwdriver can hold her own against the Tony Stark's masterpiece!"

There was a pause, during which Jane took the time to realize that maybe threatening the AI that controlled the very building she was standing in was not her brightest idea yet. On the other hand, she had faced down Loki. She was not going to back out from this particular fight, and she seriously doubted that Stark had created a HAL 2000 who could kill a person.

"Mr. Stark knows that Ms. Potts died." JARVIS's voice sounded confused, impressing Jane even more. "Unless you have evidence to the contrary, I will have to detain you until the proper authorities arrive."

"Call Mr. Hogan's number, if you don't believe me," Jane shook her head, tired of the useless argument. "He's been trying to contact Stark since yesterday, anyway!"

It took exactly one minute and three seconds, but finally, the doors in front of her opened. Once Jane walked inside, she used all her anger in order to ignore the Pull that was trying to get her to push one of the buttons for what she guessed were the guest floors. Thor was there, she knew that. And she _needed_ to see him again. But first, she had to talk to Stark, and find the way to save Pepper's life.


	13. 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony and Bruce reveal a lot of SHIELD's secrets to the group. Also, Steve and Tony's relationship gets even more strained.

Midgard was a wondrous place. Thor had learned that lesson very well when his father had originally sent him down in exile, but even now, for what had been a very short visit, he was still amazed at what humans had managed to create with their short life spans and lack of magic.

Anthony Stark's tower was a clear example of it.  It was not alive, and yet it could think.  Was smarter than many men and Asgardians Thor knew. The flying ship where SHIELD resided was also a portent worthy of any Asgardian architect. 

If he was to be honest with himself, there were days in which Thor wished to stay in Midgard. Learn all the secrets and wonders that, as a foolish youth, he had ignored. There would be no time for that now. With the Tesseract in his hands, and Loki secured, Thor had to go back to Asgard.

Those were his father's orders when he had sent him down to Midgard with the Dark Power of the Jotün.

That was why he was sent to Midgard. Not to look for Jane Foster or the few friends he had made during his exile.

Deep down in his heart, Thor wished that he could stay, just for a bit longer.

Midgard needed protectors, that much was true.  Iron Man, Captain America, the Hawkeye and the Black Widow... even the creature Hulk. They all were strong warriors, worthy of Valhalla and completely capable of stopping their enemies. But against the wrath of Loki, against an army like the Chitauri... they would need help.

Help that Thor was more than willing to provide, after presenting his case to the AllFather.

The night had been uneasy for Thor, as he kept watch on his brother. Loki had not uttered a word, refused even to look at him, and that hurt him more than the dagger that had been used against him.

And now, after hearing the story of the bond, after witnessing the closeness and peace that Bruce, Anthony, Natasha and Clint had... he wished he had someone like that. Someone with whom he could share the pain. Even the night he had failed to lift Mjnolir for the first time he hadn't felt that lonely, that defeated.

His brother wasn't going anywhere, he knew that. Not only because Mjnolir was holding his chains, no. Loki was also defeated, alone. And unlike Thor, he wouldn't accept any help, any advice. Loki's mind was only Loki's to know.  But there was no fight left in him for the moment. A long time would pass before Loki was a threat to someone else.

Thor rose from his seat and walked out the room.  The silence and the hurt of his brother's constant dismissal were making him grow weary.  He needed a change of scenery in order to ease his own thoughts.

He stopped next to the elevator, and pushed the button to go upstairs. He didn't wish to bother Stark and Banner, but it was the only way he knew to the outside. He needed to think.

Or so he had believed.

But then the elevator doors opened to show him a startled Jane Foster, who wasted no time on jumping to his arms.

 

*             *           *

 

One of the last conversations Tony had had with Pepper had been about the absolute lack of security his so-called private elevator had.

Deep down, Tony knew that there was no keeping Phil Coulson away from Pepper, and that he could create the most complex security system in the universe, and still, Pepper would have it disabled to let her bondmate in. It was one of the many things he would miss in his life, now that both Coulson and Pepper were gone.

Still, his heart ached with longing as he remembered he couldn't blame Pepper for the fact that when he was looking for a drink to try and quiet his thoughts in order to avoid waking Bruce, his _private_ elevator opened to the sight of the God of Thunder being thoroughly kissed by a petite brown haired woman, who Tony supposed had to be Dr. Jane Foster.

He _hoped_ it was Jane Foster, although he guessed that Thor would have more than one woman throwing herself at him.

 ** _Everything all right?_** Bruce's thoughts sounded adorably sleepy in his head. But underneath he could also feel a small hint of worry.  Given the day before, and the fact that they still hadn't sit down to talk about their bond, it was understandable.

**_I don't know how, but Thor managed to find an astrophysicist to grope in my private elevator._ **

**_Good for him. Why aren't you in bed with me?_**  Now Bruce sounded just a bit irritated. **_You almost died yesterday, you should get some rest._**

Tony blinked, confused. Yes, he felt sore. That was nothing new, after a fight where the armor got as damaged as it had. But, if he had to compare with past experiences, he wasn't much worse than when he had fought Obadiah.  Truth to be told, Whiplash had hurt him far worse, and there was no comparison between his electric whips and the Chitauri Army.

 ** _You're thinking about experimenting with yourself,_** Bruce chastised. **_Take it from a pro... it's never worth it_**

**_Hot astrophysicist groping god of thunder in my elevator, and you want to argue safety in the lab?_ **

"Am I supposed to get jealous?"

Tony turned around, to see Bruce walking towards him. His hair disheveled, wearing only a blue pair of pajama pants that were just a little too big for him, hanging loosely from his waist.

"Good morning," Tony greeted him, kissing him softly in the lips.

 ** _Oh. There really is an astrophysicist groping Thor in your elevator._** Bruce blinked twice, as Dr. Foster finally let go of a grinning Thor. **_I don't know why I doubted you._**

"Oh... Mr.Stark!" Dr. Foster turned around to see both Tony, frowning as she saw Bruce next to him. "I... I didn't know you weren't alone. I'm sorry for interrupting but Coulson wasn't answering his phone and I wasn't sure that Thor had read my letter so..."

"Your letter?" Thor asked, but his question was drowned by Tony's dry answer.

"Agent Coulson is dead."

Behind him, Bruce put his hand on Tony's back, to offer physical support. Once again, Tony could feel himself surrounded by warmth, just as when he had faced Loki.

"That's impossible!" Dr. Foster shook her head, but she didn't look sad. Or convinced. "He's Pepper's bondmate, right? If he was dead, she would be too."

"Pepper is..." Tony trailed off, as he remembered Happy's call, just seconds before he crossed the portal.  _Pepper is in a bad shape and._  Pepper _IS_ , not Pepper _WAS._ And he _knew_ that Pepper was with Happy and Dr. Foster, because not even Coulson had trusted  SHIELD with Dr. Foster's safety. Which meant that... "Son of a bitch, Fury lied to us."

 

*             *             *

 

The insistent phone ring woke up Steve, far too early for his taste.  He was still sore from the battle; feeling every one of the years he had been alive, not just the ones he had been _awake._  He wished he could stay asleep, not just because he needed rest but because...

Steve groaned, walking towards the ringing phone.  He had lost his train of thought thanks to it, and now, he barely felt rested.  In fact, he felt more and more irritated as he answered the phone. The only ones who had his number where SHIELD, and if Steve had to be honest, he didn't want to talk to Director Fury at the moment.

Still, the phone kept ringing, so Steve answered. After all, a phone ringing should be answered.

"Captain Rogers."

"Captain, get your patriotic ass back to the Tower." Stark sounded far too angry for the early hour. Part of Steve automatically worried, because if Stark was angry, it could mean that Banner was getting angry.

_Or that Tony was absorbing Banner's anger. And that just meant that Banner is not good for him._

Steve shook his head to try and clear his thoughts, feeling once more overwhelmed by the sheer strength of the disapproval he was feeling towards Stark and Banner's bond. It was none of his business; it had nothing to do with him. And yet, he wanted nothing more than to tear them apart. To keep _Anthony_ safe.

"Did something happen to..." _~~the creature, the monster, Banner, the Hulk~~ _ "...Loki?"

"No," Stark answered quickly, annoyed; and Steve had to stop himself from apologizing for his thoughts.  "It's something we need to discuss with the whole team. Do you want me to pick you up?"

Of course, the suit would be faster than a motorbike. But given the way in which he kept reacting to Stark and Banner, Steve thought it was better to decline the offer. He needed time to get ready, because he couldn't disrupt what little balance they had managed to find during the battle against the Chitauri.

"No, I'll be there as soon as I can."

As he was putting on his jacket, he looked around his apartment.  It was bare, empty, and if he had to be honest, nothing there could be called _his._ Everything he had ever owned was lost in time. So he had no real reason to stay there. No reason not to accept Stark's offer to stay in the Tower if it came again.

In the moment he took the decision, it was as if a huge weight had lifted from his shoulders.  But he didn't dwell much on the feeling. 

Instead, he decided to focus on the fact that apparently, the battle was not over.

 

*             *             *

 

Bruce had become very good at blending with his surroundings and adjusting to any situation. It came with the territory of being a fugitive of the USA government and managing to stay out of their radar, or at least, out of a cage.

So the fact that he was calm after that, in a period of less than 72 hours, he had discovered that he wasn't as out of the radar as he supposed, that aliens were invading the earth, and being bonded in a strange way that no one had registered in the history of bond study, was nothing unusual for him. That the Other Guy, that Hulk, was completely calm even when their bondmate was yelling out of the top of his lungs that was far more remarkable.

Tony had waited until Steve arrived to call Clint and Natasha upstairs. In the meantime, Jane explained what happened to Pepper. How she kneeled over, but kept breathing; how she kept herself breathing even as she had a cardiac arrest as they arrived to the hospital; how her last words as the doctors decided to put her in a medical coma were that she was not to be unplugged, no matter what.

The sadness that rolled from Tony as they heard the story was almost unbearable. But underneath there was relief because Pepper was alive.  And as long as she was alive, that meant that Agent Coulson had to be alive too.

In his head, Tony was already making plans. Bruce shot down the first one, which involved Tony flying to the Helicarrier and threatening Fury until they revealed where Coulson was being treated and where the hell did they keep his father.  The second plan was a bit better, and Bruce suggested they ran it through the others.

Unfortunately, that particular course of action was forgotten when, just as Tony started to say that Fury and SHIELD were toying with them, Steve had to ask if Tony had hacked SHIELD's files _again._

Bruce tuned out most of the conversation as it once more degenerated into Steve and Tony not listening to each other.  Steve seemed to think that Tony was, despite all evidence to the contrary, an overgrown child who did whatever he wanted, with no regard of the consequences; Tony obviously resented that Steve had been his father obsession and if there was one thing Bruce had learned in the past three days was that his bond mate didn't appreciate being questioned when he was right.

From his place on the couch, Bruce could see Dr. Foster and Thor, sitting in the opposite couch.  Thor was paying attention to the argument, albeit not as amused as last time Tony and Steve had started a verbal fight. But watching Dr. Foster... that was a different matter.  Ever since she had stepped out the elevator, the doctor hadn't stopped touching Thor. It was very subtle: a hand on his shoulder, on his arm, brushing her shoulder against his. In fact, Bruce wasn't that sure that Thor had noticed, focusing as he was on the argument between Tony and Steve.

During dinner last night, as they ate shawarma and everyone but Steve subtly congratulated them on their bond, Bruce had come to understand that Asgardians didn't feel the Pull at all. And yet, Dr. Foster was acting just like someone who had just discovered their bondmate and was getting ready to complete the bond.

Now that was interesting. In theory, everyone had a bondmate.  There weren't official records for this, but as far as Bruce knew, there had never been someone without a bondmate. And yet, here was Dr. Jane Foster, obviously trying to bond with someone who couldn't reciprocate.

"If SHIELD wasn't keeping secrets from us, there would be no need for us to hack their files," Tony said at that moment, reminding Bruce of the file they had seen before Loki attacked the Helicarrier. The experiments SHIELD was doing with unsuspecting bonded pairs. And Tony's father.

If their scientists saw Dr. Foster, they would see what Bruce saw immediately. She would become another guinea pig for SHIELD, just like Tony and Bruce would be if anyone found out about the mindlink.

And that made Bruce wonder about Clint and Natasha. They were obviously a pair, and yet, from what everyone else had said, Natasha had been able to hurt Clint enough to free him from Loki's hold.  Were they aware of SHIELD's investigation? Bruce and Tony hadn't really had time to read past the files regarding Howard Stark, but he suspected that they didn't know.

If nothing else, the news that Dr. Foster had given them about Ms. Potts and Coulson proved that Fury didn't even trust his own allies.

And all the people in the room, even Steve, were potential guinea pigs for that particular experiment.

Under his skin, the Hulk rumbled angrily at the thought. But looking at Tony, even as Tony was yelling that Steve had no idea how the government manipulated everyone, was enough to calm Bruce.

"And what if they have a reason to keep those files secret, Stark? Have you ever thought about it?" Steve asked, almost on Tony's face. One more step and Bruce may have to intervene.  "Or did you tell everyone in the Tower _who_ is sleeping here tonight? Does everyone in New York know that Dr. Banner is here?"

 ** _Don't let it bother you, Tony,_** Bruce sent, trying to keep himself calm as he remembered the Hulk-cage in the Helicarrier. **_He doesn't really mean it._**

**_How do you know? He's been treating you as a menace since we met._ **

Now, that was true.  Steve had been polite when they had met.  But right after Tony had arrived, Steve had been on the edge. Disapproving of everything Tony did -but then, that seemed to be a constant recurring feeling among most of SHIELD's agents-- but wary of Bruce. And once the team had figured out that Bruce and Tony were bonded, Steve had turned hostile.

In a way, it reminded Bruce of how General Ross had reacted when Betty had announced to him that they were dating, three months into the project that ultimately would give birth to the Hulk.

"If your father was here..." Steve started to say, and Bruce shook his head. That was exactly the wrong thing to say.

"You want to know why my father is _not_ here?" Tony's growl was a very good impression of the Hulk's, Bruce noted. And, across the room, Natasha raised her eyebrow, glancing at him. She was also studying the situation, and Bruce didn't blame her. "Because of SHIELD's secrets! Because just like Agent Coulson he's being hidden by SHIELD."

 


	14. 13.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now that SHIELD's secrets are out, the team plans for a new mission. Also, please notice the rating change.

"Coulson's alive?"

"Howard's alive?"  Steve asked at the same time as Romanoff, Barton and Thor got up from their seats at Stark's words. He felt bad immediately, he was also worried about Coulson, true, but the only thing he could concentrate was on Stark saying that Howard was _alive._

"What do you mean, Coulson's alive?" he asked again, stumbling a little over the agent's name.

Stark glared at him, at Romanoff and Barton. Behind him, Bruce smiled lightly at the sight making Steve feel even more uncomfortable.

"Nothing I say gets out of this room. It's between us, and Coulson. If I get any idea that Fury knows about this, I'll use every resource at my disposal to make your lives a living hell. Remember when you asked me if Coulson was bonded?" Stark directed the last part directly at him so Steve nodded. He remembered quite clearly that his attempt of apologizing had led to Stark realizing where Loki was going to open his portal. "I lied. Coulson has a bondmate, but they wanted to keep it a secret from SHIELD."

"I wonder why," Banner remarked dryly from his place on the couch. He had one of Stark's tablets on his hands. No doubt, he was reading the files that _~~Anthony~~_ Stark had stolen from SHIELD. "I mean, SHIELD only has been trying to weaponize bonds for the past 70 years."

"What do you mean, weaponize the bond?" Steve asked, but his question was ignored when Natasha spoke up.

"Pepper," she said, her expression changing just slightly. She was worried, even if she was trying not to show it. "When I was undercover here, she mentioned that she hadn't got the chance to see her bondmate in a long time.  I was pre-occupied with you at the moment but... I should've seen it."

"You were up against Pepper and Coulson working to keep the relationship secret, and trust me, I've learned the hard way that if they don't want you to know something, you won't know it," Stark smiled, and for once, it was not the sad, sarcastic smile that he used all the time. It was a very honest smile and Steve wondered how it was that he knew the difference, when he only had known Stark for two days.  "And what I meant, _Captain_ , is that they've been hunting the partners of their Agents to see the effect of the wounds their Agents receive...and that's just the tip of the iceberg."

"Sending people to kill their suspected bondmates would be another, right?" Barton sounded angry, and Steve wondered how he and Natasha had met. 

"They are working on a way to track the Pull between two people," Banner interrupted. "And I'd say they're pretty close to finding out how."

"And this all ties to Howard being alive how?" Steve turned to look at Stark. "Fury told me that he and his wife died in a car accident. Why would he lie about that?"

 

*             *           *

 

"Why would he lie about _that_?" Tony repeated, incredulous. "Do you remember the last 24 hours? Fury lies about everything! Because you _know_ "Fury" can't be his real name."

 ** _Seriously? I really can't see why my dad was so obsessed with this guy,_** Tony thought to Bruce, who chuckled lightly in his head.  He knew that he had completely ruined the plan of investigating a bit more before telling anyone that Howard was still alive, but he couldn't help it. Steve Rogers really irritated him. **_I'm even surprised he survived World War II being this blind._**

 ** _Have you ever read the Captain's war record?_**  Bruce answered, sounding really amused.  **_Either it was doctored after his disappearance or he is the perfect soldier in all respects. Never disobeyed orders; never put a foot out of line._**

 ** _So what you're saying is that he's too good to be true?_** Tony fought the impulse to shake his head. If he did, the others would notice the unspoken conversation.

"He had reasons to lie about Phase 2," the Captain answered, defiant. "Not good reasons, but when one is in charge, they have to make hard decisions. And he _told_ us that he knew he should've trusted us. When he told us that Coulson died."

"And Coulson is not dead." Bruce took the chance to interrupt, which was a good thing since Tony was about to introduce Rogers to a slew of new and colorful insults from the 21st century. "So, if he lied to you about that too, is it that hard to believe that he wouldn't omit other information to keep you from leaving SHIELD or looking for information on your own?"

The look Rogers send Bruce was enough to make Tony's blood boil.  It was as if Rogers was _angry_ that Bruce had dared to speak up.  As if Bruce didn't have the right to express his opinion in Tony's house.

"He's right," Natasha interrupted them. "Fury would do that."

"He has done it before," Clint added. "Information is another way to keep assets controlled.  Telling us that Coulson was dead was a way to insure that the Avengers would be formed. And as Stark said, telling you that everyone you knew back in your time was dead, is a sure fire way to keep you from looking for them."

"That doesn't make sense," Steve argued, shaking his head. "They didn't know they would find me when the accident happened. And it isn't as if SHIELD tried to control you back then!"

"Hiding the fact that my father is alive had nothing to do with me for SHIELD," Tony said, keeping his voice low. "They never cared about me until I went and got kidnapped in Afghanistan. And I'm pretty sure that Dad didn't stop to think about me when he agreed to become SHIELD's guinea pig, because in the end, nothing mattered more to dad than finding you."

 ** _Tony_**...  The warmth that was Bruce's heart surrounded him, so he could maintain some calm. Even so, he couldn't help but flinch at the Captain's next words.

"What do you mean guinea pig? And what does that have to do with me?"

 ** _He really doesn't get it, does he?_** He asked Bruce, who was strangely silent.  His warmth and support were still around Tony but Bruce had nothing to add to the conversation.  **_He doesn't understand what Dad's obsession did to my family._**

 ** _Well, you've got to admit, it sounds strange._** Bruce answered. **_There is no information on your father's motives. The files just say that he volunteered._**

"Dad is kept in cryogenics at a secret SHIELD's installation." Instead of using the mindlink, Tony answered the Captain, as the answer was the same he was going to give Bruce. "Time was running out, right? Not really bonded to my mother, growing older every day...  I bet he jumped at the chance to participate in the study of cryogenics and the bond. I just pity the poor woman who will never know her bondmate because he chose to become an icicle for science."

Behind him, Bruce frowned. It was cool, how he could tell, even without turning to check.

"You really think he would do that?" At Rogers' words, Tony scowled. Yes, the Captain looked contrite, worried, and even ashamed of the idea. But in his eyes, just for a second, Tony could swear he saw a hint of satisfaction. Because of course, the Captain would like to think that something from his past was still there, waiting.

"Who says his bondmate isn’t an experiment too?"  Clint sounded angry, angrier than when he had been talking about putting an arrow through Loki's eye. And Tony couldn't blame him. The mere thought of what Ross wanted to do to Bruce made him livid too, and that had nothing to do with the bond. Ross probably thought that the Hulk couldn't bond. "That's what you fear could happen to Pepper and Coulson, right?"

"We can’t go storming in for him then," Natasha gripped Clint's hand hard. "If SHIELD intelligence hasn't picked up on the fact that he has a bondmate, we can't give them a heads up."

 ** _I like how she thinks,_** Tony smiled to Bruce, before turning to the couple sitting on the couch. "If we do this, you are going to be working against SHIELD, you know that."

"I've been against SHIELD before," Natasha didn't even blink. Which was, admittedly, a little scary. "And we still don't know where they have about Coulson.  As long as they don't suspect that there's a bond... we could keep this covert."

"We keep Pepper's condition a secret, so even if they do discover that Agent Coulson has a bond, they won't be able to track it back to her," Jane said, interrupting for the first time.  By now, she had given up any pretense of subtlety and was holding tight to Thor's hand. "Is it possible for Pepper to disappear from the public eye for a while without raising suspicions?"

"I can break up with her," Tony smiled, as a plan started to form. "We were pretending to date for the press. If we break up because of 'differences', we can say she went away to have some time for herself."

"Are we seriously going to try to fool SHIELD?" The Captain interrupted again, irritating Tony more. "If Agent Coulson is getting treatment, and they don't know he has a bond, why don't we wait until he's better?"

"People have a tendency to disappear from SHIELD," Jane answered before anyone else could. "To assume they're the only ones who have the right to information and research. You really want to risk losing your friend to their maze?"

 

*             *           *

 

"People have a tendency to disappear from SHIELD. To assume they're the only ones who have the right to information and research. You really want to risk losing your friend to their maze?"

Bruce nodded at Jane's words, but he wasn't really listening clearly. His mind was preoccupied with a new hypothesis. One that he was sure that his bondmate was not going to like.

Bruce didn't need the bond to feel Tony's anger and despair. While they hadn't talked much about their pasts, he was getting a very clear picture of Tony's life before becoming Iron Man. But yes, the real question was why would Howard Stark volunteer to become SHIELD's frozen guinea pig? 

Tony said it was because he wanted to be there for when they found Steve Rogers; but was that enough reason to abandon everything, even the possibility to find his own mate? 

He wanted to say something, but every time he opened his mouth, Rogers turned to see him with a stern expression that Bruce hadn't seen since the first time Betty had taken him to meet her dad.

Oh.

 _Oh._  

Tony was not going to like where Bruce's thoughts were leading.

**New Theory:  Steve Rogers' bondmate is not dead, as the Captain thought.  And is in fact, influencing Rogers' attitude towards both Tony and me.**

**Evidence:  From the moment when our bond was confirmed by the others, Steve Rogers started acting hostile towards me. Not unusual, given the Hulk, but still, different from before. Also, Howard Stark, by all recounts, was obsessed with finding Steve Rogers and was not married to his bondmate.**

**Experiment procedure:  ????**

And here was where his trusted scientific method failed Bruce. He had no idea how to proceed from here. If Howard Stark was really Steve Rogers's bondmate, they should've noticed it long before now. And yet, as far as the files went, if Howard knew, he had never mentioned it to anyone, and obviously Steve didn't know because he acted as if he was bondless.

Of course, Bruce wasn’t one to talk. His own bond was not a normal bond. Not with the telepathic link, or the fact that it had formed long before he and Tony had actually met. That left him with two possibilities. Either there was something in the Stark men that somehow enhanced and confused the Pull, or...

Well, the Hulk had been created in an attempt to recreate the Super Soldier Serum.  That was something he had in common with Steve.

But it was impossible to test that theory, as there were no other Super Soldiers, no other Hulks... even the Abomination that Bronski had turned into was very different from the Hulk. And of course, there were no other Starks.

And what if SHIELD came to the same conclusions that he had? What if they tried to take Tony, not because of his bond to Bruce, but to try and replicate whatever results they got with his father?

Under his skin, the Hulk rumbled. Getting Tony away from SHIELD's eye was a priority now. And, just to be safe, it was probably a good idea to get Howard out of wherever they had him now.

 ** _You want to meet the in law?_** Tony asked, as that last thought had been too close to the surface, too easy for Tony to pick it out despite the fact that the rest seemed to have been unnoticed. **_I can't guarantee he will like you._**

 ** _I got some experience with overprotective parents,_** Bruce smiled but then he noticed again that Natasha was watching closely and tried to maintain a serious face.

"Until we know what SHIELD knows, we can't really move forward to find Coulson," he said out loud. "And there's also Loki.  Are we going to hand him to SHIELD and the World Council?"

"My brother will be judged in Asgard." Thor's tone didn't allow for any discussion. "With the Tesseract's energy, we can travel back without the Bifrost."

"And that'll keep the Tesseract's out of SHIELD's hands," Steve nodded. "I like that."

"Could you come back?" Dr. Foster didn't seem thrilled at the idea of Thor leaving. And if Bruce's suspicions were correct, he couldn't blame her. "Last time you said you would... and then you didn't."

"The Bifrost was destroyed in my battle with Loki," Thor explained, his voice surprisingly tender. "But with the Tesseract's help, I believe my father and Hemindall could restore it faster. Or send me here if I was needed."

"Hemindall is the guy who sees everything?" Clint took the chance to interrupt. "You yelled his name a couple of times in New México. Maybe he could tell you where they keep Stark Sr. and Coulson."

"You mean you think you and I can't find out that information?" Natasha sounded a little upset at the idea.  And far too eager to play against SHIELD in Bruce's opinion.

"I think that it would be best if the team didn't stay together for now." Steve said, surprising everyone. "As long as they don't see us together, they won't know about Stark and Banner's... _bond._ And it would make sense for us to leave, once Loki is dealt with. None of us wanted to be a team in the first place."

Captain America was telling the truth. And yet, Bruce couldn't help noticing the slight pause he made before referring to his bond with Tony, and add it to the growing pile of evidence supporting his hypothesis.

 

*          *          *

 

 ** _We're alone now, you know?_** Tony lowered the blueprints for the Tower repairs as he smiled at Bruce.  It had been almost an hour since the others had left for the Helicarrier, while Bruce and Tony stayed behind; because the sooner Stark Industries got started with helping the reconstruction of the city, the better. And of course, once out of the SHIELD's ship, Bruce was not very eager to return to it. At least, that was the story, and Tony hoped that the others would stick to it.

Jane Foster was getting ready to for a flight to Washington D.C., in order to start the smoke screen to keep Pepper's condition out of the press.  She wasn't happy at leaving Thor's side; another reason why she had to be away from SHIELD's eyes. A woman bonded to someone who _couldn't_ bond had to be interesting for them.

 ** _I noticed._**  Bruce took of his glasses, and walked towards him, smiling. And even though he knew it made him sound like a fourteen year old girl, it was the greatest sight Tony had seen that morning.

Once again, Bruce took the initiative, kissing Tony deeply, slowly. Unlike the elevator, where his kisses had been desperate and anxious, this one was focused, a slow exploration of Tony's mouth, as Bruce teased his lips open.

 ** _Bed?_** One of the many advantages of the link was that Tony could give his suggestion without making Bruce stop. It was a new experience for him, to be the seduced instead of the seducer. And, if he was being honest, it was a very interesting experience, one he could get used to.

 ** _Bed._** Bruce smiled against his mouth, before moving downwards, kissing his chin, down his neck, where he stopped for a second, above Tony's pulse that was growing faster by the minute.

It was only when they fell on his bed, still embracing, still kissing, as Bruce helped to take off his shirt, when Tony remembered a small footnote that he had read in SHIELD's very extensive files on Bruce and his greener half.

Bruce, of course, noticed his hesitation and much to Tony's displeasure, stopped his exploration of Tony's body just short of his waistband.

"What's wrong?" Bruce asked, leaning into Tony's touch. He had his hands inside Bruce's shirt, close to his heart. And he could feel that Bruce's heart was beating very fast.

"I read your file," Tony said, leaning forward to kiss Bruce lightly in his mouth, to reassure his bondmate that no matter what happened, he wouldn't go away. "We're not going to get a surprise visit from Jolly Green, are we? Because I like him a lot but I don't know if..."

To his surprise, Bruce chuckled, his eyes lighting up with amusement, but still brown and clear. Not a hint of green to be seen. **_It's ok. The Other Guy... the Hulk... he's not very interested in this._**

 ** _But you did transform once, during sex, didn't you?_** Tony insisted, glad that Bruce had shifted to the link. Because while he was explaining, Bruce made him lay on his back, lying on top of him, trailing a path from Tony's neck to his arc reactor with kisses.

 ** _Before sex. Never got to the 'during' point._** Bruce was laughing inside his head, making him feel almost as if he was drunk. **_And that was the point, Tony. The big guy came out because I wasn't with you._**

**_So... if it's with me..._ **

**_He doesn't have to come out._**  Bruce stopped as he reached the arc reactor, looking up to Tony, as if asking for permission.

Instead of answering, Tony grabbed Bruce's hand and placed it on top of the reactor. He had never done that before. After Obadiah's betrayal, no one had touched the reactor again. But Bruce was different. Bruce was his bondmate and the one person in the universe that Tony could trust. He looked down, to see his hand on top of Bruce's tinted blue due to the light coming of the reactor.

 ** _You know I trust you both,_** Tony thought, wondering if the sentiment would reach the Hulk.

 ** _I know,_** Bruce's thoughts were tinted with admiration, awe, some lingering anger in Tony's behalf, but most of all, warmth. It was too soon to call it love, but Tony didn't really care. For him the only thing important at the moment was to get closer to Bruce. And as soon as he thought that, Bruce grinned wickedly at him. **__**

Anticipation raced down Tony's spine at that grin as he lifted the hand covering Bruce's to bury in his hair. Bruce turned into the touch and rose up to kiss Tony, his thumb grazing the reactor in a caress. Hands travelled from his chest to his sides, back to his nipples and firmly down again before teasing him under the waistline of Tony's jeans.

Once again, Bruce paused a second there, making Tony moan in expectation. And then, to his shock, Bruce grabbed his jean’s fly, opening it in one swift motion, freeing his erection.  Bruce's eyes meet his, still brown, still calm despite the fact that he could feel Bruce's pulse against his body, racing as fast as his own.

Tony held his breath, convinced that it just couldn't get hotter than that, wishing that he had the foresight of asking JARVIS to tape what was happening because he wanted to keep that image, of Bruce's lips just above his hard cock, forever engrained in his mind.

And then, still watching him intently, Bruce licked the head of his cock softly, almost experimentally, making Tony even harder, just before he took his whole length into his mouth.

**_Fuck! Bruce..._ **

**_Not yet,_** Bruce smiled as he kept sucking, his hands caressing the sides of Tony's hip, holding him in place as he positioned himself a bit better between Tony's legs.

And then, when Tony thought he couldn't get any harder, and as he started bucking his hips upwards, in rhythm with Bruce's mouth, he was hit by a wave of pure, undiluted desire. Bruce's desire, mixed with his own.

The sheer intensity of it was more than enough to drive him over the edge, shouting his lover's name.

 

*          *         *

 

To say that Fury hadn't been amused at the news that Thor was going to take the Tesseract and Loki back to Asgard would be an understatement. However, Bruce thought that perhaps Fury was expecting it, because he hadn't fought that much against it.

According to Natasha, he didn't even blink when Rogers suggested that they all would go their separate ways. Either he had never counted on having the team 'on deck' at all times, just calling them when needed, or he still felt some guilt for lying about Coulson. Bruce didn't know Fury that well, but he would've bet on the second one being true.

It wasn't until they were walking through Central Park to see Loki and Thor off, when Bruce realized that there was one small detail they had omitted during their careful planning.  Steve left on his motorcycle to "explore America", Natasha and Clint had a leave of absence, and their bond was known to SHIELD, so it was to be assumed they would be together. But he... he had no real reason to stay with Tony.

And he knew his bondmate knew that too.

 ** _Tony..._** he looked at him, as they got in Tony's convertible, but Tony's eyes were hidden by his dark glasses.

_**I know, Bruce... just... let's not say anything now. Let me just pretend we're going back to the Tower, yes? Just... for a minute more.** _

And even when Bruce knew they were not going in the Tower's direction, he didn't send more thoughts in Tony's direction. If he had to be honest, he also needed to pretend that their time together wasn't going to end soon.


	15. 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trip to Malibu begins, a rescue mission is mounted, and Bruce and Tony need to talk.

**_I don't think I can do this,_** Tony kept his eyes on the street, as they neared Port Authority. They had taken far longer than it should since Tony had to go around the battle zone, but for him, it was too soon.

He couldn't believe he was taking Bruce to the bus station so he could leave. He didn't want to do it.

**_If I stay, we’ll make Fury suspicious,_** Bruce didn't sound any happier, making Tony's heart break. Once again, he wondered how it was that they had grown so close in such a short time.

And how he was going to manage to go on in the long weeks before they could see each other again.

Tony parked the car and looked around. As far as he could tell, no one was following them.  He was usually not a paranoid person, and he was far too used to paparazzi and reporters around, but he still felt incredibly jumpy. As if every single person in the bus station was out to get him.

**_I'm sorry, that's me._** Bruce caressed his cheek, leaning a bit closer, but not enough to kiss. They were, after all, out in the open. **_I'm not used to feeling... safe._**

**_Once you're home with me, you will never have to fear again,_** Tony vowed, feeling once again the familiar anger burning in the back of his head. It did every time he thought about the people chasing Bruce all over the world, to try and use him as a weapon.

**_Careful there,_** Bruce admonished. **_You don't want to get overwhelmed by my anger._**

**_You never overwhelmed me_** , Tony took down his glasses to see directly into Bruce's eyes. **_Not even in the Helicarrier, you know that?_**

Bruce frowned for a second, before leaning down and kissing him lightly. It was obvious that he didn't want to go either.  And Tony was running out of logical reasons why they should be apart for longer than an hour.

**_I don't really remember what happens when he's out. Just... some brief flashes, sometimes._ **

The _like when you fell from the sky_ goes unsaid, but Tony still hears it. And while he wouldn't have done anything different, because he knew that it had been the only possible choice, Tony still felt guilty at the idea that he would've left his bondmate to die alone.

**_Images, rather than words?_** Tony got out from the car, not because he wanted to, but because he knew that stalling more would only increase the pain. Before walking away, he pulled out his silver portfolio carrying the Mark V from the back seat. **_As if you were watching tv with the sound muted?_**

**_Yes... how did you know?_** Bruce followed him, frowning a bit.

**_That's how the mindlink works for me when you.... when he's out._**  Tony smiled at the memory a bit. Because the one thing that never abandoned him was the warmth protection of Bruce's mind around himself. 

**_So you could have followed him through the Helicarrier?_**  Bruce walked next to him, carrying the duffle bag that Natasha had given him. They all knew it probably had a tracking device from SHIELD, but they had also agreed to play nice for the time being. Bruce was planning on getting rid of it long before he reached Malibu anyway.

**_If I hadn't been otherwise preoccupied trying to keep the ship afloat, yeah, I think so._** Tony turned to see Bruce, an idea forming in his mind. **_I don't know how far he out was when I lost the link. I knew you both were fine, but that was it._**

**_I could feel you too, but I couldn't hear you until I was crossing the bridge._**  Bruce also sounded thoughtful, as if he was doing some calculations in his head.

**_We really should check the range of the bond, shouldn't we?_**  

 

*             *            *

 

Bruce turned to look at Tony, seeing the now familiar glint in his eyes. Tony had an idea for an experiment, and nothing would make him back away from it. He had seen that glint when they had met, when he had started hacking the SHIELD's database, and, briefly in his mind, right before letting the Hulk out against the Chitauri.

And yes, testing the range of their mindlink was a good idea. With their new job -because Bruce seriously doubted that they wouldn't be called on again, either by SHIELD or by sheer necessity- they needed to know all the possible variables. 

**_I think the Hulk could follow you, easily, straight to Malibu_** _._ He settled on thinking, as he remembered all the times when, after transforming, his other self would go without stopping in just one direction.  Probably towards wherever Tony was. **_But I don't think it would be a good idea to try it. If the New York battle didn't bring him to... other interested parties' attention, constant sightings of him in the country would._**

 Tony drew a deep breath, before handing Bruce his suitcase. **_I know. That's why I want you to have this._**

**_Tony... what?_ **

**_It's the Mark V. The portable suit. If anything happens and you can't or won't let Jolly Green out to play... You can still defend yourself._ **

Bruce looked at the suitcase, then at Tony's expression, and realized that Tony was serious. Bruce had read the files; he knew that even when he had built War Machine for his best friend, giving it to him had been a battle that almost leveled the Malibu house. And here he was, giving him Mark V, even if the Hulk could destroy it as if it was made of wet tissue paper.

**_I don't..._ **

**_Don't say you're not going to take it, or I'll have to follow you in it all the way to Malibu._ **

**_Now that's an idea,_** Bruce accepted the suitcase, because he was aware that a lot of people were sending curious looks their way.   Tony was easily recognized, and while his face wasn't that well known, someone was going to add two plus two regarding his identity soon if he didn't move. _**Do you think you can track me all the way only using the bond?**_

Tony smiled at him, caressing his hand. **_I'm pretty sure I can. Not sure I want to see you go away, but..._**

**_I know._** Bruce leaned into the touch before turning away, holding the suitcase and his dufflebag . He was trying to remain strong, because he knew that if he didn't, he wouldn't be able to leave Tony behind. But then he thought about it a bit better, and, just as he had done the night before, he concentrated his entire mind into how it had felt to kiss Tony. The sensations of Tony's tongue in his mouth, the way he had shuddered when they separated. Not too far from him, he heard Tony trying to bite back a moan. **_Tony... You're it._**

And before his bondmate could answer, he ran to hide among the crowd.

 

*             *           *

 

There was a feast when Thor returned from Midgard, but Thor's heart once again, wasn't in it.  The lessons learned during both his travels to the other realm weighted heavy on him, and they, together with the knowledge that his brother's madness had increased, made it impossible for him to join the feast.

The Warrior Three and Sif were worried about him, but he dismissed them easily, going straight to his chambers.

The first time he had returned from Midgard, his heart had been heavy with the loss of his brother, and Jane. He missed her, just as he missed her now; the only difference was that now there was the chance of returning once more to her side. The Bifrost could be reconstructed; the Tesseract was in their hands. He didn't need to be apart from Jane for long.

And yet, even a couple of days seemed too long. And it was not just Jane. He wanted to be with her, sure, but he also wanted to explore the beauty that Midgard had to offer. And, even if he had tried to forget, Loki's words still rang in his ears.

He had pledged to protect Midgard, and was not doing a good job at it.

"You are missing a great feast, my son." Odin came into the chamber, looking much better than when he had sent Thor to Midgard the first time. Still, it was impossible for Thor to miss the sadness in his father's eyes. Sadness that Loki had put there. And now, Thor was about to make that weight even greater.

"I'm afraid my heart is not set on celebrations tonight, father," he answered, closing his eyes. He wondered if the heaviness that weighted his heart would feel lighter if, as his midgardian friends, he had someone who shared it. For the first time in his long life, Thor actually felt envious of the mortals and their short lifespan. "I'm afraid I have failed in my duty."

"You brought your brother back, as well as the Tesseract that was lost many centuries ago. Not only that, but, for what Hemindall says, you fought an invading force with only midgardians as your allies." There was admiration in Odin's voice, even if it seemed veiled. But then, the Allfather always recognized a good warrior, and the other Avengers were exactly that: good warriors. Had any of them fell in battle, Thor was sure they would've earned their place in Vallhalla.  "I believe that means you did what you set out to do, my son."

"I am a lousy protector," Thor admitted, sighing. "I cannot protect Midgard from all the dangers that plague her, if I'm here, disconnected from it."

"Bifrost will be rebuilt," Odin assured him. "And, if a great threat comes to it, I will send you there myself, you know that."

Thor lowered his head, gathering courage before speaking what he had been thinking since handing his brother to the prison guards.

"Not all threats start big, father. Some pass unnoticed by us, and by the time I get there, it could be too late." As he spoke, Thor thought of the stories that Coulson had told him about Stark, Banner and Rogers. How they had fought valiantly against enemies that had obviously been deemed too insignificant for him or anyone else from Asgard to go down and help.  And yet, if Stark hadn't defeated the man called Whiplash, the Midgard armies would've found themselves destroyed by a man blinded by revenge.  If Banner hadn't escaped, Midgard could've overrun by monsters created in the minds of their people. If Rogers hadn't sacrificed his past, the Chitauri would've arrived to Earth far sooner... before Thor had learned the value of humility. "I need to go back now."

Odin looked gravely at him, and Thor had to resist the urge of lowering his head.  It was hard not to, when the Allfather was not looking at him like a son, but as a warrior. Thor knew he was being judged in that very moment.

"What danger threatens Earth now?" Odin asked after a long pause.

"Midgardians themselves," Thor explained. "Not all of them, but some."

"Midgardians have been fighting each other for centuries," Odin sat in a nearby chair, as if considering Thor's words. "We are not to get involved in their struggles, just as none of the other realms interfere with Asgard's affairs."

"Is it interference when I'm helping the defenseless?" Thor asked, remembering Jane, Darcy, Selvig, and the people escaping from the Destroyer. "Not from their wars, but from disasters? From powerful humans who seek to damage others?"

"And how would you know the difference between something you should change, and something that would be best left alone?"

"With experience. I might make mistakes at first, but the only way I can learn is by being there. Wasn't that why you sent me there without my powers in the first place? So I would learn the lessons that I had failed to see in Asgard?"

"You wouldn't be treated as the crown prince there. And, until the Bifrost is repaired, you would be stranded there.  What if Asgard needs you before the Rainbow Bridge is rebuilt?"

"My friends would find a way to help me return home," Thor answered immediately. Of all the questions his father had posed, that one was the easiest one so far. Because Thor knew that Jane could, in time, find a way to build a Bifrost for Midgard... and with the help of Tony Stark and Bruce Banner, it would take no time at all. They were experts in Midgard's own brand of magic.

He also was sure that, if Asgard was in dire danger he wouldn't be returning alone. The Avengers would surely help defend the Golden Realm, just as they defended their home planet.

"Midgard grows more and more powerful every day," Odin said after another one of his long pauses. "I believe it is wise for our realms to remain allied. But as they have not one king... a political union will be hard.  But if you fight with her protectors, they will see we mean no harm, despite what Loki did."

"Yes, Father. They understood Asgard was not behind his actions." Thor tried not to think about all that had happened then. About his last battle, when Loki had rebuffed all his attempts to talk and help stop the Chitauri, stabbing him when he got too close.

"Your mother will miss you," Odin rose from the chair, to grasp Thor's shoulders. "One shouldn't be separated from his loved ones for long."

"Father?"

"Make the preparations you need. I'll allow you go live in Midgard, until the Bifrost is repaired," Odin continued, as if he hadn't heard. "I'm proud of you, my son. You finally learned to follow your heart."

 

*             *            *

 

**_In 2009, I had been hiding for two years in a small town in the coast of Italy._ ** ****

Bruce's voice was clear inside Tony's head, as he drove his car into the highway. Despite his original plan of only giving his bondmate 30 minutes of advantage, thanks to traffic, he was about two hours behind.  So far, they had discovered that their mindlink range was quite extensive; Tony guessed that it was about seven miles, judging for how they had been able to communicate during the battle against the Chitauri, and the speed he was currently traveling at.

**_I was flying to Afghanistan for a very ill advised trip._ **

**_I know. And that's what I wanted to tell you. On May the 20th of that year? I hulked out for no reason, and the big guy tried to reach Afghanistan._ **

Bruce's thoughts echoed in his head, and Tony had to do a conscious effort not to push the gas to reach him faster. May the 20th, 2009 was a date he would never forget as long as he lived. The day his normal life ended, and he was kidnapped by the Ten Rings.

**_You felt the attack,_** Tony finally managed to think, careful to keep his eyes on the road.

**_The Hulk did,_** Bruce admitted. There was a small pause in his thoughts, as if he was talking to someone else. Tony grinned. He had an idea of what his bondmate was doing. **_He tried his best to overpower me for months, trying to reach you. I'm sorry I didn't let him._**

**_Water under the bridge,_** Tony didn't dwell on it. He had been a very different person before Afghanistan. Had the Hulk been able to reach him...? Tony wasn't sure he would've been so happy with the bond.  **_Wait. 2009, we hadn't met, not even casually during a convention, had we? How did you feel when I was attacked?_**

**_All the evidence points to the fact that the bond already existed, but it wasn't strong enough for me to notice it._ **

**_But the Hulk noticed it. You know what that means._ **

**_Tony..._** Bruce sounded a bit annoyed.  But the annoyance wasn't really directed at him, which told Tony exactly what his bondmate was doing. He just had to keep his eyes on the road for the next pit stop, and then probably call someone to pick up his car depending on Bruce's next movement.

**_The bond has to be older than that, you know I'm right._ **

**_But how can we pinpoint the moment it was created? And how could it happen without you and me meeting?_ **

**_Maybe we crossed paths before without noticing?_**  Tony suggested, at the same time that he commanded JARVIS to put up his schedule for 2008 and co-relate it to Hulk sightings.

**_I’ve been on the run since 2006. Attending a scientific conference wasn't in my plans._ **

Tony frowned, remembering with sudden clarity the night he had tried to escape from his own house. He didn't remember the exact date, but he remembered the fear he had felt, waking up from a nightmare where something was chasing him.

**_Do you remember the date of your accident?_** He asked, suddenly very sure of the answer.  On the distance, he could see the sign for the stop where he was sure Bruce had gotten off the bus.

**_I'll never forget it. January 12th, 2006. Why?_ **

Tony swore, as JARVIS confirmed it was the same day when Tony had gone temporarily insane. Thinking back, that was when his sudden anger spikes had appeared for the first time, when he would feel irritated at small things that weren't even there.

**_Bruce, do you think that gamma radiation could have the side effect of amplifying the pull?_ **

Inside his head, he could hear Bruce swearing too.  They had a hypothesis now, and no way of proving if they were right.

 

*             *            *

 

Thor looked around his chambers, silently wondering if there was anything he wanted to take with him. Anything he would need, and couldn't find in Midgard.

However, he knew that as long as he had Mnjolinir and his friends, he would be fine.

Sif and the Warrior Three had already said his goodbyes. They didn't quite understood why Thor wanted to go alone, but, as always, his friends respected his decision. If he needed them, they would find the way to him.

It was only then when he remembered what Jane had said about a letter, that Coulson had given him.  It took Thor a moment to remember the envelope he had found hidden within his belt after the battle, the one he hadn’t opened and then had forgotten all about.

Sitting on his bed, he opened the envelope, recognizing Jane's handwriting immediately. 

_Dear Thor,_

_I knew you were going to return one day, only I hoped that it would be back to New México directly, instead than having to save us all from an unknown threat. I don't know exactly what happened, but Phil -who is rather nice once he's not stealing years of research and specialized equipment- seemed to believe that it's serious enough that his Men in Black organization wouldn't be able to protect me._

_I'll be staying at Stark Towers, with Ms. Pepper Potts, a friend of Phil’s. She is Iron Man's girlfriend and I'm actually writing this letter following her suggestion._

_Remember that night, when you explained me everything about the nine realms and the world tree? I noticed you never mentioned anything about the Pull. I don't even know if you know what it is, which is going to make this awkward as hell but I still have to try._

_The Pull is something we all feel down on Earth, that pushes us towards the one person who will complete us, who will share our life and our emotions until you die together. I spend my whole life thinking that there was something wrong with me, because I felt my Pull directing me towards the sky. And then I met you, and I understood._

_My Pull leads to you, Thor Odinson. I know at first I acted as if I hated you, and I know that you probably don't feel the same way I do. I mean, you said you would come back to me, but I know there's no bond between us. But even if we can't bond, I want you to know that I love you._

_And that I will always wait for you, no matter what._

_Love_

_Jane Foster_

*             *           *

 

Finding out where Coulson had been moved ended up being deceptively easy. Whether it was because the other agents were still shocked about having the fight brought to the Helicarrier instead of being able to choose the site themselves, or because they all were getting complacent that now the Earth had a real group of superheroes to protect it, Clint wasn't sure but he hoped it was the first.

Bringing up security holes to Fury was always stress inducing. And given that he still had to go to a full psych evaluation to confirm that Loki's influence was completely gone, Clint definitively didn't want to be the one who pointed out that it still was possible to discover classified information before passing said evaluations. 

The truth of the matter was that SHIELD had been terribly unprepared. They weren't ready to deal with real gods, and that was a hard lesson that they should've learned back when they met Thor for the first time.  They weren't in the same league as a narcissistic playboy with an expensive toy.  Clint had heard many of the other agents talking about Stark as if he had no right to be called a superhero, or even being in the same payroll as them. Hell, once upon a time, even Clint had joined in. But Tony had saved them all, when Clint had been Loki's puppet.  Tony Stark had proved once and again that Natasha's evaluation of him had been wrong. Of course he was a hero.

Even Banner, whose alter ego's modus operandi was to smash everything, smash a bit more, smash what is still moving, and then smash everything again just in case, had been more useful than SHIELD during the invasion.

Yeah, all the agents were shaken to the core because of that.

It would take a long time to recover their confidence in themselves.

Which explained why Coulson's undercover alias for recovery was so sloppy, in Clint's eyes. He was being treated at Lenox Hill Hospital, not far away from where the battle had occurred, hidden among the many victims of the Chitauri. Not only that, but he was out of danger, according to the files. 7 hours in surgery, during which he hadn't stopped breathing. He was in a coma, but the doctors seemed confident.

Clint was sure that once they got him near his bondmate, Phil would wake up.

He was on his way to his rendezvous point with Natasha when Maria Hill intercepted him.

"Agent Barton, you're needed at the bridge."

Clint cursed in his head, blaming himself already for being careless. Going to the bridge could only mean that Fury wanted to talk to him. And Fury never did small talk.

As he arrived, he could see that Natasha was there too. This made him feel even more uncomfortable, as there weren't many reasons to call them both at the same time. Fury usually didn't even like to put them together in the same mission.

"The Council is not happy with the situation as it stands," Fury started, as Clint took his place at the table.  "The reasons why they didn't approve the Avengers Initiative are still on the table. The members are too unstable to be considered good field agents. They want t keep monitoring them."

"They will not like that," Natasha said, her voice cold. But Clint could feel her anger, boiling in her head. "Stark only agreed to work with Agent Coulson after driving insane half the handlers we sent and you know he won't talk to me. Banner is probably halfway to Brazil by now, and we all know what happens if he realizes he's being tailed.  And Captain Rogers wasn't very impressed with Phase 2."

"Which is why SHIELD is not going to monitor them," Fury explained as if he was talking to very young children. Clint had to give his boss credit, though. He hadn't blinked when Natasha mentioned Phil's name. "The Avengers must stay together, not just for the Council's peace of mind, but also for the public's reassurance. There will be a lot of questions that can't be answered if the guilty party is being tried in a different planet.  You understand where I'm going with this."

"You want us to convince them to what? Move into SHIELD's helicarrier?" Clint asked, wondering where he and Natasha fit in Fury's plan. True, they had helped far more than any of the other agents during the battle, but that didn't made them part of the Avengers Initiative, not really. Once they had Phil out safely and figured a way to get Stark's father out of the lab where he was stashed, that was it for them with the group. They didn't even have superpowers. "You know Stark won't agree."

"I saw you two during the battle. You work well with them." Fury's tone didn't leave any room for argument. "You'll be the new contact with Stark from now on."

"Sir, Stark hates me," Natasha pointed out, not cowed by their boss. That was one of the many things Clint loved about her. She never showed fear, not even if she was worried.

"He'll get the fuck over it." Fury raised his eyebrow. "And that's why you're not going alone. Barton will be there too. You'll convince him that it's in Banner's best interest to stay at Stark Industries. Our cameras picked up they were friendly to each other before the attack.  And then, you'll get Rogers back from whichever small road he's managed to find. All the Avengers, together in Stark Tower, where it will be easy to contact them and keep the Council happy. Understood?"




Natasha turned to look at Clint. This was playing right into what Stark wanted, but what was Fury's interest on all this? It worried Clint not to know that, because he knew that Fury always had a secret plan under his sleeve. 

"What if Stark doesn't like it?"

"Then make him like it. Ask for Ms. Potts's help, because according to Coulson's files, she agreed with the idea of Stark being a consultant for us, and had approved the original cover story. So she could help."

Clint kept his features cold, following Natasha's lead as she accepted the mission for them both. He knew it was unusual for him to remain quiet, but he was still wondering what was Fury's final game.

 

*             *            *

 

**_Tony? You're still following me?_**  Bruce asked, as he stopped to sit and watch the river in front of him. He had been following it for an hour, since leaving the bus station.  He hadn't mentioned his little detour to Tony, since he was sure his bondmate wouldn't agree with him, but Bruce didn't like to stay too long in a traceable transport. 

He didn't think General Ross would've been at his heels that soon after the New York battle, but Bruce had learned long ago not to push his luck.

**_Still behind you, Bruce._** Tony's voice was still clear, so his bondmate couldn't be that far away. **_Although now that you took your small detour I think that now I'm ahead of you, you know?_**

**_Cars will always be faster than walking._ **

**_Unless you let the big guy out for a bit,_** Tony suggested, laughing. **_I still think we should test that._**

**_If I do that, I'll lose your armor, Tony. It's not a good idea._ **

**_I have another eight waiting at home,_** Tony sounded insistent, and Bruce couldn't blame him. He was also curious about how the bond seemed to affect the Hulk. But before that, there was a lot of soul searching for him to do. Before Tony, Bruce had spent most of his time denying that the Hulk was part of him; he hadn't even called him by name. But if they were both bonded to Tony, if they both had the mindlink, and it had been Hulk the first one to know... then they weren't too different after all.   And Bruce wasn't ready yet to face that.

So he needed to distract Tony, and unfortunately, he only had one way to do it.

**_I've been thinking about Steve's reaction to us._ **

**_Really? That's your best shot at distracting me?_**  Tony snorted. He still sounded well within their range which meant that either he had stopped the car, or Bruce was closer to the road than what he had originally calculated. **_You said it was not the gay thing the problem. So, what do you think it is?_**

**_It's hard to explain. I have a theory about it... and about your father. I think we were wrong about the SHIELD experiment._ **

There was a long silence on Tony's end, but Bruce could feel his agitation. And for a moment, he regretted even thinking his theory. But Tony had to know the truth. Especially if he was right.

**_The file says clearly that it's an experiment to test the effects of stasis on the bond._**  Tony finally sent his way.  But he sounded agitated, so Bruce started walking on the general direction where he knew Tony was. **_What could've we gotten wrong?_**

**_The reasons for the experiment in the first place._**  Bruce stated, being careful of where he walked. The last thing he needed was to trip, risk breaking and ankle, and having Hulk come out in the middle of his conversation with Tony. **_I think they put him in stasis before they thought of the possible ramifications to his bond._**

**_My father wasn't bonded to my mother,_** Tony conceded. **_So... you think he was bondless? Or kept in stasis to keep his real bondmate alive?_**

**_It's been almost impossible to prove that someone's death before the bond forms will cause his future bondmate’s death._**   Part of Bruce wanted to keep stalling, because he didn't want to hurt Tony. But he was also a scientist, and as such, he knew Tony would want to know the truth. **_But if your father was bonded to someone, and they didn't want that someone to die due to your father's accident..._**

**_... My father never mentioned anyone in his life that could've been his bondmate. The only thing that really mattered to him besides the company was... Oh, no. No. That's impossible._ **

**_The evidence says it's possible.  Your father must've asked to be kept in stasis to insure that his bondmate would survive no matter what._ **

**_You're making a huge leap there, Bruce._** Tony was starting to sound desperate, holding onto his denial. **_If -and I'm not saying it's possible, because it's not- IF my father was bonded to Stars and Stripes,  don't you think  Rogers would know it? They worked together for almost a year before the Cap took his ice nap._**

Bruce closed his eyes briefly.  He could hear the road not far away and hoped he could find Tony quickly. It had been a mistake to start this particular conversation with just the mindlink.

**_You told me that your father meet Steve the day they used the superserum on him, right?_ **

**_Right. Dad's favorite bedtime story._**  And yes, Tony's sarcasm was back; which meant Bruce had to be careful now.

**_That's something I have in common with Steve._** Bruce thought, very carefully.  The last thing he wanted was to give Tony another reason to dislike Steve. **_My accident happened because I was trying to recreate the serum. That affected our bond, created a mindlink.  It could've affected theirs._**

**_I thought gamma radiation affected our bond._**  Even without seeing him, Bruce knew his bondmate was shaking his head.  He sounded resigned. **_Ok. I'll concede. It is plausible that my old man is Rogers' bondmate. IF that is true, then you think that Steve's reactions to us are not his but... my dad's?_**

**_I've had bad luck with father in laws before._** Bruce laughed, confident in the knowledge that, whatever Howard Stark did, it couldn't top General Ross sending the army after him.

**_So... this means I get to call Steve "Dad"?_** Tony asked, and his laugh echoed for a long time inside Bruce's head.

 

*             *            *

 

_"Oh, I have to hand it to you, Steve, this is different."_

_Steve was walking next to Howard at the Fair of the World of Tomorrow, only that unlike the real fair, it was completely empty. The only ones there were them._

_"I liked the fair," Steve defended himself, not knowing why. He knew he was dreaming since the one time he had been there it had been before the serum. Before he actually had a shot at doing his duty for the country. Before he had met Howard. "The future is not as nice as the one you painted here."_

_"Really? You mean not everybody walks around in bright colored tights?" Howard looked at him and Steve blushed, realizing he was wearing his Captain America uniform, the one that Coulson had helped design. "You could've fooled me."_

_"This is not... "_

_"Relax, Steve. I'm joking." Howard shook his head, entering the Modern Marvels Pavilion. "Although I can't deny I'm curious. For what you've told me, it sounds interesting."_

_"What have I told you?" Steve frowned. He felt as if he was missing part of the conversation._

_"Let's not do this, Steve." Howard's smile faltered, and suddenly his friend looked far older than Steve had ever seen him. Old enough to have married, to be a father. "I know you think I'm dead, and this is just a dream."_

_"I know you're not dead," Steve interrupted. Maybe he had no idea of why he was dreaming with Howard at the moment, but he knew that. Stark had shown him the files. Howard was alive, hidden deep in a SHIELD's installation, somewhere in the USA. "I just... don't know where you are."_

_That seemed to do the trick, at least for his dream logic, because Howard started growing younger, right before his eyes._

_"You know where I am," Howard told him. "You know where to go. And you're so close, Steve...  I can't wait to see you again."_

 


	16. 15.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for a rescue mission, and Tony starts understanding what Bruce meant with his theory.

Lenox Hill Hospital was filled to the brim, which was both disheartening and encouraging for Clint. All the people hurt were people who they hadn't been able to save. People who had been in the crossfire between the Avengers and the Chitauri, and suffered for it.

If Clint had been faster, if he hadn't fallen under Loki's spell... All those people wouldn't be here. And it was only the fact that Natasha was behind him, her support unwavering, what made Clint be able to keep walking and try to ignore the guilt that was trying to eat his heart.

He couldn't have known that the glowing stick would give Loki control over his mind or that he was trying to really conquer the world. By the time he knew, he was unable to fight it and thus, thousands of people had suffered for it.

"Clint, keep yourself together," Natasha whispered into his ear, as they followed Jane to the main desk.  "If Dr. Foster drops the ball; it will be up to you and me."

Now, the first time that Jane Foster had crossed paths with SHIELD, Natasha had been just recovering from her mission as Stark's secretary and preparing for a long term undercover job in Russia so she had missed how Dr. Foster had tried to bullshit SHIELD pretending that Thor was her ex-boyfriend.  Clint himself hadn't been very close, as his duties as a sniper required a certain distance, but he remember how Coulson had talked about her afterwards.

A resourceful woman who wouldn't stop at anything to get the answers she wanted.

"I don't want to see any confidential information; I just want to know if my cousin is here!" Dr. Foster wasn't quite yelling yet, but she was close to it. "Please! He worked next to Stark Tower and I haven't been able to contact him... I need to know if he's alive."

"Ma'am, I'm sorry, but I can't give you information on any of the patients. Unless you can give me a name..." The blonde nurse at the desk was saying, and Clint held his breath.  They had come straight to Lenox because he had found out that Phil had been admitted there as a John Doe -sloppy, rushed job and as soon as Fury had finished the clean up from trying to blow up Manhattan, heads would roll- but if he had to be honest, they hadn't planned much either.

"He forgot his wallet at home," Dr. Foster explained quickly, pulling out a battered wallet from her purse. "So, I don't know if he'd have his job credential with him. On TV they said there were a lot of unidentified people and..."

"Sorry, Ma'am, but unless you're sure that your cousin is here, I really cannot help you." The nurse was trying to sound sympathetic, but she also sounded very tired. Clint couldn't blame her. Every time that there was an emergency, tiredness won over empathy every time.

"Look, let me show you his picture then." Before anyone could complain or stop her, Jane shoved the wallet in the nurse's face. "See? This is Don... maybe you've seen him?"

The nurse sighed but, to Clint's relief, agreed to take the wallet and see the drivers license that JARVIS had created less than an hour ago, using, yet again, Don Blake's long forgotten license.  Clint had heard about that from Coulson, back when they were still trying to figure out where the hell Thor had come from.

"Miss, I don’t know... “The nurse began saying before he took a good look at the photograph in front of her. In a second, her whole expression changed and he got up from her seat. "Oh. Wait here please."

They only had to wait for a couple of minutes before she came back, followed by a doctor who looked as if he hadn't slept in a week.  Given the huge quantity of patients around, Clint didn't doubt he had.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Stephen Strange," the man said, holding out his hand to greet Dr. Foster. "Nurse Carter told me that you came here for John Doe #320"

At the number, Clint heart stopped.  320 people hurt because he hadn't been strong enough as to fight Loki's control. 320 people who for one reason or another, weren't easy to identify.

"My cousin, Don Blake," Dr. Foster interjected immediately, playing the concerned familiar part very well. "As I told the nurse, he works near Stark Tower, where those... those _things_ appeared and my aunt is very delicate and I don't know..."

It took a bit more convincing, and at one point Clint was convinced that Dr. Strange would call hospital security, but he was finally convinced to take them all to see 'Don'. On the way to his room, Dr. Strange also gave them more details than the ones Clint had unearthed in Phil's file.

"It's an amazing recovery, Miss Blake," Dr. Strange said, as he stopped in front of the door. "Although there are a couple of things that puzzle me from his file... and I hate to say that I do hope that your cousin has good insurance. It was necessary to operate him immediately to save his life, and..."

"Don't worry about the insurance," Natasha walked forward, offering her hand to the doctor. "I'm Natalie Rushman, personal PA for Ms. Potts, Stark Industries’ CEO. The Blake’s are friends of the Stark family, so Mr. Stark will handle the expenses incurred by the hospital."

The doctor blinked, very surprised, but took Natasha's hand anyway. 

"Very well then. I'm afraid I can't let anyone not family come into the room but..."

"Mr. Roberts is Miss Blake's fiancé," Natasha interrupted quickly, and Clint walked closer to Jane, putting his hand on her shoulder.  If the doctor thought that it was strange that he hadn't been close to her before, he didn't comment on it. "And as a legal representative of Stark Industries, I have to be informed of the procedure too."

"Mr. Blake was very lucky that he was found when he was.  One of the aliens stabbed him through the back, missed his heart by just an inch and if the first response team hadn't found him and brought him to us immediately, we wouldn't have been able to save him. But I've got to say, your cousin is a fighter.  We don't even have him on a respirator; he's been breathing on his own even though he's still in a coma."

"Does that mean we can move him?" Dr. Foster asked, holding Clint's hand in order to look more as if she was leaning on him.

"I wouldn't recommend it, ma'am, unless..." Dr. Strange started just to be interrupted again by Natasha.

"All due respect, doctor, Stark Industries has a top of the line private hospital. If Miss Blake wants her cousin treated by them, then I'm afraid there's nothing you can do to stop us."

It was true, too. In the end, the hospital let them and Happy take a private ambulance and take Coulson with them. It was the easiest extraction job Clint had ever done. And he figured that once he figured out how they had done it, Fury would make some heads roll.

He just hoped the heads weren't theirs.

 

*             *            *

 

After Bucky's death, Howard Stark had taken upon himself to try and cheer Steve up. On one of those many occasions, he had forced Steve to go with him to the movies, and ended up just watching a few brand new cartoons made by Warner Bros. and Disney to help the war effort.

He hadn't thought of that day in ... well, decades, but as he stopped his motorcycle in the middle of the New Mexico desert, he couldn't help but remember Bugs Bunny's line in one of them.

"I think I made a wrong turn in Albuquerque."

His original plan had been to follow Highway 80 as far as Denver, then cross Utah and Nevada on his way to Malibu. However he kept taking the small routes south, crossing West Virginia instead of Ohio, and ending up in Tennessee when he had been planning to be in Saint Louis. He had managed to get back in course in Arkansas, taking the 40, but as soon as he had crossed the state line of New México, he had been once again heading south. 

In less than five days.

Of course, most of that was because he had mostly given up sleep. Oh, he had tried. His first stop had been just out of Charleston,  but he hadn't been asleep for more than two hours when he had woke up, feeling the need to go immediately. 

The same had happened the next day, outside Tennessee. One hour sleep, and then, back on the road.

If he dreamed, he didn't remember those dreams. The only thing he remembered was the urgent need to go on.

At first, he had been convinced he wanted to be as soon as possible in Malibu, so they could start seriously planning how to get Howard out of SHIELD's labs.

Part of him, that part that had been optimistic and naive enough to believe that his constant lying on the enlistment forms wouldn't be caught and that sooner or later someone would accept him into the army, wanted to believe that what he was feeling was the Pull. The rest of him, the logical part of him that had made him realize that the only way to stop Red Skull's bombs was to crash land into the ocean, insisted that it was just a fool's dream.

Steve's Pull had never been very strong. It had never made him want to move from Brooklyn, never stray too far away from New York in general, but other than that, it never interrupted his life. His determination to serve in the army was not, as Bucky joked a couple of times, Steve trying to go against the Pull. It had been because it was his duty, and only that.

On the day he had stepped into Dr. Erskine machine, Steve had stopped feeling the Pull completely. He had figured it was a fair trade: the ability to do more, to help more in the war efforts in exchange for his ability to feel the Pull.

And while he had internally mourned for it, mourned for the bondmate he would never meet, he also remembered Bucky's philosophy about the Pull in war times. As long as the bond was not completed, their bondmate wouldn't die if they did. Sure, they would be sick for days, and yes, live the rest of their lives bondless... but they would be alive.  Steve had never understood that, not until seeing Bucky fall to his death.

Because yes, it was better to think that the one destined to be your other half would survive your death.  Especially now, 70 years into the future. Whoever his bondmate had been, she surely would've married, have children, and live a full life without knowing him, believing she was bondless.

So the need to move, the need to be in that particular road in the middle of the New México desert, couldn't be the Pull. For one thing, it felt far stronger than Steve's pull had ever felt. Back before the war, before the serum, Steve had been able to ignore that call. This one was insistent, a constant reminder that was not to be denied.

And so, he found himself arriving to the same town where, according to the files Nick Fury had given him, Thor had originally fallen to.

 

*             *           *

 

 ** _I still think there are other possible variables to the situation with my father and the Man with a Plan,_** Tony said, just as Bruce entered casually into the room Tony had booked for both of them. In 48 hours they had discovered two very important facts: The radio of separation that the mindlink supported was about 7 miles, and they could be apart for about 100 miles before the Hulk started to grumble under Bruce's skin. Despite Tony's insistence, however, Bruce had not relented to letting him out just so Tony could confirm a theory.

The first night they had discovered that as much as Bruce could and had slept outdoors more than once, neither he nor the Hulk wanted to sleep separated from their mate. It had been a very close call, but thankfully it hadn't come to that since Tony wasn't eager to sleep alone either and had met them halfway in the Mark VIII.

 ** _Very well, let's hear them,_** Bruce smiled, dropping his dufflebag on the chair near the door, but carrying the platinum briefcase with the Mark V next to the bed. **_You don't believe it's possible that they're bondmates?_**

 ** _It's plausible,_** Tony agreed, kissing Bruce as he pulled him towards the bed. Another thing they had found: although their bond was old enough that they could be in the same room without needing to have sex immediately, as most newly bonded pairs, the truth was that they wanted to. If Tony's calculations were right their bond was as old as Hulk, seven years more or less. By then most bonds were already stable, bondmates were even able to travel to other continents without their partners, and stop worrying every second their other half wasn't there.  Bruce figured they had done everything backwards. **_You think Erskine's serum had something to do with the fact that Rogers doesn't know?_**

**_I didn't know about our bond until I saw you, and if you're right..._ **

**_I'm always right._**  Tony's hands had moved from Bruce's neck to start unbuttoning Bruce's shirt, as Bruce leant on top of him, opening Tony's shirt to see the arc reactor shining.

**_IF you're right, it means that your father was not obsessed with the Captain just because he was an important experiment lost at sea._ **

**_Let's not talk about Steve right now, ok?_**  Tony bit Bruce's lower lip, finally taking his shirt off. And Bruce had to admit, Tony had a point. They could talk about Steve, Howard, the bond and everything else in the morning. Right now, they had far more important things to think about.

As Bruce started licking Tony's neck, Tony started unbuckling his belt, making Bruce shiver and smile.  He was glad that he had accepted Tony's idea of staying at a hotel, rather than his original plan of camping or staying in the car.

As soon as Tony's hand touched his cock, he felt a jolt of _lust/desire/love_ pass through his body. It was the only thing he still couldn't get used to, how the bond would meld their feelings, making them feel what the other was feeling at the moment.  He bit down Tony's neck playfully, as his bondmate tried tugging his underwear down.

"Sir? Incoming call from Miss Romanov." JARVIS's voice was muffled, coming from the phone that was on the night table, under Bruce's shirt.

"Not now, JARVIS!" Tony grumbled, his palm caressing Bruce’s length, still trapped inside his underwear. "It can wait until tomorrow."

 ** _You didn't mute him?_** Bruce managed to ask, licking the inside of Tony's ear.

"Sir,  you commanded me to ignore all other orders in case Miss Romanov had an update about either Ms. Potts or Mr. Coulson." JARVIS insisted, and both Tony and Bruce groaned.  As much as they wanted to keep going, their friends had priority.

 ** _And, once we've kicked Fury's ass, we're going to spend three months at the Tower without leaving it, order in and no interruptions._** Tony winked at him, taking his hand out of his pants.

 ** _Oh, I remember. Candyland, right?_**   Bruce smiled, getting up.

 ** _That's the next three months._**  Tony's smile was bright enough to light the room, even as he answered the phone.

"I hope this is important, Agent Romanov."

"We've got Coulson at the Tower," Natasha sounded guarded, as she usually did, but Bruce thought he could hear the relief in her voice. At least one part of the plan had gone as planned.

"What do the doctors say about his condition?" Tony asked, grabbing Bruce's shoulder.  Worry flooded through Bruce's body, as he took on all his bondmate's emotion. "And Pepper?"

"You can ask them yourself." Now Natasha was clearly laughing, and Bruce couldn't stop himself from smiling. He didn't know Coulson or Ms. Potts, but he knew that they were important for Tony. And if they were fine, Tony was happy. That was more than enough for him.

"Stark, please tell me you're not trying to piss my boss off?" Coulson's voice was a bit rough, as if he had just recently awakened, but he sounded fine. More than fine, he was alive.

"Tony, I'm watching the news. Why are they saying you flew a nuke into a wormhole?"  That had to be Pepper, judging by the spike of pure happiness and relief coming from Tony. It was so big, that Bruce thought that it would be impossible to call Hulk for at least a week.

For one short moment, everything was fine.

He only hoped their luck held until they found Howard Stark.

 

*             *            *

 

There wasn't a lot to see in the small town where Steve finally stopped to rest. He wasn't sure of why, but he was almost convinced that he had found the exact place where SHIELD's secret base was.

It was a similar feeling to the one he had felt decades before, traveling with Peggy Carter through Brooklyn and pointing at every one of the places where he had gotten beat up. Familiarity and something more.

Part of him was sure that it was just wishful thinking, but as soon as he passed a small bookstore, almost at the edge of the town, Steve knew without a doubt that, a few more miles into the desert, he would find a wire fence and the same kind of security he had seen at the Helicarrier.

Weeks before the plan was supposed to get into action, he had managed to arrive to the point where the secret base was. He was sure of it. So he kept going, even as he knew that it was not the plan, even as he knew that, statistically, he was going to be wrong.  After all, if he was wrong, there was no harm on continuing.

And if he was right, he could gather some more information. He knew that Thor said that his friend was able to see everything but Thor wasn't there. And if the base was near, Steve could find a different way to get Howard out.

As he kept going, the sky started to darken. At first, Steve didn't think anything about it. Flash storms weren't that unusual in the desert. But as the thunder started, without any rain preceding it, he finally stopped the motorcycle. He remembered very well what had happened on board of SHIELD's plane when they had been returning from Germany. 

Sure enough, the lightning followed. Steve had to cover his eyes as the lighting started falling closer and closer to where he was, but still missing him, as if they were sent in purpose. Soon, amidst the light and electricity, he saw how Thor landed not many feet away from him.

"You're far from where we were supposed to meet, my friend."  Thor said, as the clouds started dissipating.  The Asgardian looked happier than he had when he was taking Loki back to their realm, so Steve guessed things had gone as he expected with his father.

"So are you," Steve answered, walking away from the bike to greet Thor. He had been going for a handshake, but Thor instead grabbed him in a breathtaking hug. "Why aren't you in Malibu?"

"Hemindall saw the direction you were going, and I thought you would need my help," Thor explained, pointing to the horizon with his hammer. "Stark's father is in that direction."

"Are you sure?"  Steve looked to where Thor was pointing, feeling the need to go further; to see with his own eyes if that was true.  He understood the need to be discrete from Fury's eyes but if Howard was so near, how did it made sense to go all the way to Malibu and then come back?

It didn't, and it was killing Steve to be so close to a small piece of the past he had thought lost.

"Hemindall sees all. He's never been wrong before."  Thor told him, not moving. "I believe that we should either turn back and take a different road, or call our companions before doing anything rash."

Steve opened his mouth to retort that he was sure that the two of them together could check the base out. He had read Thor's file, and he knew that, without powers, Thor had managed to get to the very center of a SHIELD's base looking for his hammer. And Steve himself had managed to storm more than a couple Hydra bases without backup too.

The first time, to save Bucky and with minimum training of his own abilities.

But before he could say so, his backpack started beeping and vibrating.  It took Steve a moment to remember that Natasha had given him a cellphone in case he needed to communicate with the team, and that he had just shoved it in there. He appreciated the ease in which it was possible to locate people now, but he hadn't really thought about it since realizing that he wasn't on the road where he was supposed to be.

It took a moment to find the phone itself, but soon, he was talking to Agent Romanov.

"You found Coulson?" he asked, as he knew that was going to be the reason for her to call. "How is he?"

"He's awake," she told him. "He and Miss Potts are recovering at the Tower, so we can continue with the next part of the plan."

"Is Coulson awake?" Thor asked at his side, loud enough to be heard by her on the other side of the line.  "Has he asked about us?"

"Is that Thor?" Agent Romanov sounded surprised, and Steve couldn't blame her.  It had been a surprise for him, even after Thor's explanation. "Are you in Malibu already?"

"No, I... I took a detour," Steve admitted, his eyes still fixed on the road before them.  If he didn't tell them where he was, he was pretty sure that they would find him. And, as much as he wanted to get going, to find Howard as soon as possible, he also knew that the success of any mission could depend on the backup he had. "We're in New México. According to Thor, we're less than three hours away from SHIELD's base.

To her credit, Romanov didn't swear. But Steve could imagine that in her head, she was cursing him for being an idiot. Peggy used to do that when Steve did something that she considered stupid, according to Howard.  Then again, according to Howard and Bucky, Steve was always being an idiot when it came to missions.

"We know what base you mean. Stay on town, we'll get there soon," she finally said. "And whatever you do, _don't_ move until we're there."

Steve sighed. It was not going to be easy. He had never been good at standing still when someone needed a rescue.  But he also knew that Thor wouldn't let him go until the others arrived now, and he needed his energy to save Howard.

 

*             *           *

 

Ever since his accident, Bruce had gotten used to the strangest ways of transportation thought of by mankind. He had traveled by-and jumped from- helicopters, planes, ships, elephants, donkeys, bicycles and once, a camel.  For a while, he had thought that nothing would top SHIELD's helicarrier, but now, as he was being carried by Iron Man through the sky, barely holding the Mark V's briefcase, he had to rethink that statement.

 ** _You're ok?_**  Tony asked, and Bruce was glad that he could hear the smile and warmth in Tony's thoughts, as the armor's mask was intimidating and cold.

 ** _I'm not going to change as long as I'm in your arms, Tony._** Bruce chuckled as he saw the states pass by. He had argued that they could wait for Natasha and Clint to pick them up at the hotel when they told them where Steve was, but Tony insisted that the suit was faster.

And the faster they got to where Steve was, the faster they found Howard... well, the faster they could go back to what they were doing before JARVIS interrupted.

 ** _Actually, I was thinking that the problem here is that, it's not as comfortable as my private jet. Can't exactly offer you refreshments while we're doing this._** Tony quipped. **_Or entertainment._**

 ** _I've read about your jet, and the parties you used to throw,_** Bruce laughed.  **_How far are we?_**

 ** _Close enough, look to your right,_** Tony told him fondly. True enough; a black plane was flying not so far from them. **_Wave to Natasha and Clint; don't make them feel that we don't love them._**

Bruce obliged, smiling, as Tony let his speed drop enough to reach the back of the ship that had opened for them.  Obviously, his bondmate had been chatting with Natasha through the armor's comm link.

And, as Clint greeted them, making a joke about interrupting their honeymoon, Bruce realized that he had been wrong at the helicarrier. They weren't a time bomb, at least not anymore.

They really could become a team.

"So, what's the situation?" Tony asked, pulling up the faceplate of the armor. Bruce lowered his head, just to hide the fact that he wanted to kiss him very much. Apparently, Clint was right. They had reached the honeymoon stage of the bond. A little too late, but then, nothing about their bond was following the rules.  "What did spangles do to throw a spanner in our plan?"

 ** _Tony, be nice. If it was me..._** Bruce admonished.

 ** _I know, I know._** Tony answered, over Clint's quick explanation. **_But they don't. And if I don't criticize Captain America, they will know something is up._**

 **"** And after Natasha cursed all of Roger's family line, Pepper told us to grab this plane and come get you."  Clint finished. "It's not the same base were we tried to study Thor's hammer, but it's got the same floor print, according to JARVIS. So I can get us in quite easily. I've got the weak points in security mapped out. If everything goes according to plan, we can get your father out before Fury realizes what we're doing."

"He's going to know it's us." Bruce said, as they reached the cabin where Natasha was. "Even if we get the cameras jammed, witnesses will remember Captain America, Thor, and Iron Man running around the base."

"Well, we're not trying to be that discreet. After we get Stark out, we'll deal with Fury." Natasha didn't take her eyes away from the horizon as she spoke, but Bruce could've sworn that she sounded apologetic. "But if the Hulk makes an appearance, security will increase a tenfold. So I'm afraid you'll have to sit this one out, doctor."

"The Hulk will stay out," Bruce agreed, holding up Tony's briefcase. They had discussed this at length as soon as they realized that there would be no way to convince Steve to wait. Even if Tony still didn't want to rule out other possibilities, he knew odds were that Howard was Steve's bondmate. The rescue mission had just bumped from 'important' to 'we have to do this right now.' "But that doesn't mean I have to."

 

*             *           *

 

Clint Barton had done a lot of stupid things in his life.  Granted, most of them had been in his youth, in the circus, before joining SHIELD. But after getting his badge, he had been smarter. Except for the Natasha situation, and disobeying orders to save his bondmate had been the best decision he had made in his life.

But now, in the course of less than a week, he had managed to betray SHIELD not once, but thrice.

The first two times hadn't been his fault. Loki's mind control had done it all, but still, it had been Clint's driving what had gotten them out of the cave in and almost killed Maria Hill, so he counted it.  And it had been his planning what had made the helicarrier almost fail. In fact, the only variable had been Stark. If it hadn't been for Iron Man, Clint was pretty sure the body count on his shoulders would've been higher.

Still, as Natasha kept telling him, it hadn't been _his_ fault.

This time, however? All on him.

It had been him the one who told Stark what frequencies to jam, in order to make the security cameras stop working, and give them a five minute window to break the perimeter. It had been him who told Thor and Cap where to find the two closest sentries, and where to stash them to avoid early detection.  And yes, it was him the one who was shooting arrows left and right in order to disarm as many agents as he could, while Natasha did the same.

"There have to be easier ways to hand out a resignation letter," he muttered on his commlink, making Natasha smile. "I swear if I wanted to get fired, I would've just insulted Fury's patch."

"We could always tell Fury you were helping us under duress. But if you're hunting for a new job, I can tell you that nothing tops Stark Industries' health care," Stark told him, as he opened yet another hole on the floor. They were in level 4, and needed to reach level 6. The deeper they went, however, the fight got easier.  There were more guards, as it was obvious that Level 6 was not something SHIELD would leave unprotected, but at the same time, there weren't any more familiar faces.

None of them had been in any base where Clint had served. None of them looked at him confused, or betrayed.

"I still haven't gotten my vacation time," Natasha said, sounding a bit out of breath. Clint turned around, just in time to shoot the hand of the man who was giving her trouble. "But I've got to admit that the perks were good."

"Is this really the time to be arguing job security?" To Clint's surprise, of all of them, the least worried with pulling his punches was Steve. He was not quite using lethal force, but it was still obvious that his concern for the other agents was wavering.  "How far are we from the main lab?"

"Just two more levels," Bruce's voice sounded a little too calm for Clint's tastes, but then, the man had managed to reach the center of a war zone without hulking out and had been saddled with Tony Stark as a bondmate, so he had to know how to stay calm.

And Clint had to admit, seeing two Iron Man armors on their side made some of the other SHIELD agents consider things twice before engaging the Avengers.

Bruce Banner had taken to the Iron Man Mark V with incredible ease, although that could also be because of JARVIS helping him navigate. And while two Iron Men weren't exactly subtle, it was still easier on the base than just one Hulk. The silver and red armor he was wearing was quite impressive, and it made Clint realize why, of all the other prototypes, it had been the one that hadn't been tossed aside as soon as Tony finished the newest model. It probably had had some work done since the day in Monaco -Clint had seen the footage, worried for Natasha as she had been doing her assignment as Tony's secretary back then - but it still had more or less the same functions as back then.

"This is taking too long! They could be moving him as we speak."  Captain America sounded far more stressed than it warranted. It was yet another thing to talk about with Natasha, once they were out of there. Clint was starting to suspect Fury's reasons for putting this particular team together more and more.

"No one is getting out of here with a cryogenic unit except us, Cap." To Clint's surprise, Tony didn't sound teasing or sarcastic. In fact, he sounded as close as reassuring as Tony Stark had ever managed in the short time that Clint had known him. And yes, they were looking for Stark's father, but it still looked as Steve was far more invested in the rescue mission than Stark himself.

Without saying a thing, Bruce came closer to Tony and they both shot the repulsor rays to a point on the floor not far from where Steve was standing. The metal alloy that SHIELD used was strong, but not even it could stand against the power of two of Tony's babies. In no time, there was a perfectly round hole on the ground, through which they could pass easily.

The cryogenic lab in Level 6 was top of the line for SHIELD's standards, which meant that for anyone not a Stark; it belonged in the realm of science fiction.

The cryogenic chamber was not exactly the top of the line but it had probably been back when Stark the senior had gone under. It was big, bulky and the equipment around it took about half the room, which was thankfully almost empty, with only a few scientists that had been easily put out of commission.

It was a pity that Clint would not be going back to SHIELD after that day, or he would have a word with Fury about giving all SHIELD's scientists a bit of hand to hand combat training to avoid this from happening to them.

"Perimeter clear," he said on his comm, but while Natasha, Tony, Bruce and even Thor answered back, there was no word from Rogers.

The Captain had gotten in front of the chamber somehow, and he was just standing there.

"Cap? We need you to move if we're going to figure out how to move my Popcicle." Tony put a hand on the Captain's shoulder, but it was ignored. And that was not a small feat, Clint had been on the other end of one of Iron Man's "friendly" taps, and with the armor on, it was pretty much like a punch from a heavy weight.

And yet, the Captain was completely frozen, in front of the cryogenic chamber.

"What's wrong with him?"  Natasha asked, just as Bruce landed near Tony and pushing up the face plate of the armor. Clint had to admit he was relieved to see that the good doctor's eyes were still brown.

"I don't know," Tony answered pushing his faceplate up. He was looking everywhere except to the small window of the cryogenic chamber, where one could barely see the hint of a human face. Not enough to make out the features, thanks to the dry ice on it, just the minimum to see that the occupant was indeed human. "I can't move him."

"We need to figure out how to get the cryo chamber out, before we worry about Steve," Bruce was already at the main computer, but it was obvious that he didn't have enough practice with the armor to be able to type with the huge, clunky fingers.

Before anyone could say anything, though, the Mark V started unfolding from Bruce's body, allowing Tony, who was definitively not looking surprised at that, to help Bruce out. But at the same time, where Clint was expecting a quip, a joke, something to ease the tension, Tony remained silent.

And yet, Bruce smiled slightly.

Clint frowned, catching Natasha's sight. She also seemed to find the exchange far more interesting than Thor trying to push Steve away from his possession, without much success. It was an eerie reminder of the first time Clint had seen the Asgardian Prince, getting ready to put an arrow between his eyes.

Perhaps it was the memory what made Clint look up, to the position he would've chosen if he had been protecting the base instead of trying to infiltrate it. But it was a good thing he did, because it was then when, just a bit to the right, he saw the glint of a gun's sight.

It took him exactly two seconds to tighten up the string of his bow and shoot the sniper, just in the shoulder so he wouldn't be trying a second shoot. It was enough to make him lose the actual target that he had set up, probably the Captain's head, but not fast enough to stop him from actually shooting. 

The bullet passed harmlessly about an inch away from Steve's head. In normal circumstances, no one would've mentioned it.

Except that it was right then when Howard started to scream.

 

*             *           *

 

_Cold._

_Everything was cold._

_Cold and dark, for a long, long time._

_Steve. Find Steve. Steve was cold._

_Steve was in Danger._

_Warn Steve._

_STEVE._

Howard Stark opened his eyes and, with the little air that was still in his lungs, found the strength to scream.

 

*             *           *

 

 ** _Bruce, how the hell is he awake?!_** Tony asked, as he had JARVIS analyze the integrity of the chamber.  He wasn't an expert in cryogenics, but he knew that it was impossible to wake up before it was open.

 ** _He woke up once. When they got Steve out from the ice._** Bruce supplied, typing as fast as he could.  "We need to get him out, now!"

 ** _So... hypothesis proved?_** Tony walked around the chamber, lowering the faceplate of his armor. While he was aware that with cryogenics it was necessary to take precautions before waking up anyone inside a chamber, those precautions were thrown out the window when it was his FATHER the one inside, and he was awake.

If they didn't get him out, his lungs were going to freeze.

And while part of him wanted to hit his father for all the lonely nights he and his mother had, for all the years that he had suffered thinking his father was dead, that he hadn't been a good enough son, that he had really destroyed his legacy. That his father's legacy had almost killed him.

Tony was not ready to let his father die if he could help him.

Fate -and Howard's secrecy- had given him a second chance, and Tony was not going to waste it.

 ** _In theory, if we get him out, Steve might come out of it._** Bruce told him. **_And I'm not going to be fast enough if he keeps screaming like that._**

"There's a sickbay in Level 5. I think you and Thor can get us there in time," this time, Bruce spoke to the whole room. "I can stabilize him there, but we need to get him out, now!"

Tony didn't wait for a second more, using all the strength in the armor to rip open the chamber. Thankfully, he didn't need to worry about catching Howard as he stumbled out of it, because it seemed that once again, Bruce was right. Steve got out of his strange paralysis and sprinted to catch Tony's father in his arms.


	17. 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time to get out of the SHIELD base and tie some knots.

**16.**

Cold.

Everything around him was cold, and he was getting even colder by the minute.

Hypothermia? Most likely.  But he couldn't see anything, and he couldn't move since there was a wall of something metal surrounding him.

A refrigerator? How had he gotten into a refrigerator?

He blinked, trying to think about the last thing he remembered, only to find that he couldn't.  The only thing in his mind was a name: Steven Rogers.

Steve.

He knew he wasn't Steve. But he didn't know how he knew that. At the moment, he only knew that Steve was important. That he had to get out, get to Steve.

As he kept screaming, because of the cold, because of Steve, who wasn't there, because of the fact that he couldn't remember how he had come to be (buried? abandoned? locked up?) there, the darkness broke. The cold started to dissipate as a gold and red blur appeared before his eyes.

He took a step forward, confused, and fell. But before he could hit the ground, a blue clad arm held him. Blue and Red. And White. And...

"Howard?"

That was his name. Now he remembered. He was Howard Stark  founder and owner of Stark Industries. He looked up, and met his helper's face. Blue eyes, worried, and a blue mask, with a huge white A in the center. He knew that mask, even if he hated it so much because it was a mask, not a helmet. It demeaned everything his rightful owner had fought for. It made a soldier into a performing monkey. A soldier he knew very well.

"Steve?"

The arms around him tightened, and he could feel the texture of the fabric of the costume. It was not cloth, and it wasn't the body armor that now he remembered he had _designed_ for Steve. To keep Steve alive against bullets, but that had proven completely useless against ice.

Cold.

"Is he conscious?" Two voices asked at the same time. One of them sounded odd, as if talking through a malfunctioning microphone.  He blinked, and another face appeared next to Steve.  Brown eyes, brown hair, with a slight hint of white.  Not someone he knew, and although he had to admit that his memories weren't exactly reliable right then, he was sure of that. 

"Wh-where am I?" He asked his voice raspy. He still wasn't sure why Steve was there. Steve had been lost; he had piloted a ship straight into the Atlantic. And Howard had sworn to find him. So why was now Steve finding them. They were not dead. He didn't feel dead.

"New México, Mr. Stark," the man told him, as he tried to check his pulse. "We need to take you to the infirmary."

"His vitals seem stable," the other voice said, and Howard tried to look around.   Steve murmured something, but Howard didn't hear him. His eyes were still getting used to the light, but it seemed that what was talking to him was a machine. A red and gold machine, with a shining light on his chest.

A shining round light.

Howard knew that design. He had reverse engineered something similar, but far bigger, from a Hydra weapon that Steve and his Howling Commandos had brought him once, years ago.

(How many years, he still wasn't sure. But it had to be more than 10. He remembered his wedding to Maria, and how beautiful Peggy had looked as a bridesmaid. How they all had promised to keep the secret. )

"Did... did I make you?"

The soft spoken man turned to see the robot, a strange expression in his face. Howard tried to stand up, still feeling weak. Now he remembered that, after Steve had disappeared, he had made a contingency plan, in case he took too long to find him.  And he was cold, and his muscles felt weak.  Steve, on the other hand, was as strong as always. Steve hadn't been frozen. He had. And then... he took one step towards the robot, trying not to trip with his own feet.

The face of the robot flipped open to reveal a person underneath. And as soon as Howard saw the other person's brown eyes he knew. It was impossible not to know those eyes, even if the owner looked impossibly older.  The eyes that made it possible for Howard to forget, to ignore the insistent call of the pull for long enough so he could function somewhat normally in society from the moment when he had seen them, the day the boy was born.

Anthony.

"Tony..." Howard managed to gasp, as he raised a too weak arm, to touch the skin of the man encased in the red and gold metal suit. To touch his son. "Tony, is it you?"

The last time he had seen Tony, he had been leaving for MIT, a young teenager who was too smart for his own good. Rebelling against everyone and everything.  And now, before him, there was a man.

How many years had he lost?

 

*             *            *

 

"Did... did I make you?"

Tony had to steel himself as he heard the words. It was too close to what Howard had said to him once, indirectly through film footage. It took him a whole second, inexcusable for his intelligence, that his father wasn't seeing _him_ , but the Iron Man armor. For someone who had last been out in the world in 1991, it would look like a robot.  Quickly, he flipped up the visor so his father could see his face.

Intellectually, he knew that there was a chance that his father wouldn't recognize him. They hadn't seen each other in almost 20 years, and even before, his father rarely saw him.  Howard Stark was always busy, always away. And when he was at home, Tony always felt that Howard wanted him as far away from him as he could. 

So yeah. His father not recognizing him would be painful, but he had to be ready for the possibility. Especially as he looked so fragile, covered with dry ice, in Steve's arms. So... vulnerable. Almost young.

**_Tony... he shouldn't be able to move; we need to take him to the infirmary now!_**  Bruce thoughts interrupted his and Tony stepped forwards, trying to catch his father as the man reached towards him, trying to touch his cheek.

"Tony...Tony, is it you?"

**_He recognizes me..._** Tony marveled, reaching with his gauntleted hand to touch his father's hand.

For years, ever since seeing the missile with the Stark Industries logo fall close to him back in Afghanistan, Tony had been trying to separate himself from his father's memory. He was proud of what he had done to Stark Industries, moving away from weaponry to clean energy and peace. But at the same time, he couldn't help but wonder if his father would've done something different.  That maybe he wouldn't have let Stane become a war profiteer by selling weapons to the other side.  Or that, in the end, he wouldn't be proud of what Tony had become.

"Welcome back, dad," he managed to say.

"I hate to cut the reunion short, but there are reinforcements coming," Clint yelled at them. In the back of his head, Tony realized that the archer had decided not to use the communicators that SHIELD had given them. Which, now he realized, was an excellent idea, and he should've thought of that before they had embarked on the rescue mission.

**_You were distracted,_** Bruce grabbed Howard's free hand, to check on his pulse. **_We all were._**

"Who are you?" Howard asked, but, to Tony's relief, he didn't let go of his cheek yet.

"Dr. Bruce Banner, Mr. Stark," Bruce politely introduced himself. "We came to get you out."

"We need to be fast," Natasha walked towards them. "Soon, we'll have to deal with the type of agents that shoot first and ask questions later."

"I'll protect How... Mr. Stark," Steve said, and Tony had to fight the urge to roll his eyes. Everything was pointing to the fact that Bruce was right.

**_You know I'm right,_** Bruce bent to pick up the portfolio armor again.  **_Can JARVIS pilot this one on his own? And keep an eye on his vitals?_**

**_Of course he can, I programmed him._**  Tony knew what his bondmate was planning, and even when he knew it was the worst possible moment to do so, he wished he could kiss him. Because he knew what Bruce was planning to do, and no matter how much Tony knew it would be all right, how much he trusted that other side of Bruce; he also knew that Bruce didn't trust himself.

**_I'm counting on you to keep him focused._** There was the ghost feeling of lips on his own lips, making Tony smile.

**"** That's not going to help if they shoot at you, Cap." Tony managed to smile at the way his father frowned; obviously offended at the idea that someone would shoot Captain America. "But Dad can use Bruce's ride."

"Don't worry, it's got an integrated pilot," Bruce told his father, as he opened the portfolio, helping Howard to put on the armor. It was only when they got to the helmet when Howard seemed to panic. Given that they had just gotten him out of a metal coffin, Tony couldn't really blame him. It had been almost six years since Afghanistan, and the idea of letting anyone but Bruce touch his chest still made him shiver.

"If I wear this... how are you going to get out?" Howard asked, still confused and shivering, but looking far more awake than what Tony had expected.

Then again, he had never expected for his father to wake up _before_ they could take the cryo-unit out.

Bruce started unbuttoning his shirt, and behind him, Clint laughed.

"Fury is going to have a heart attack, you know that, right?"

"I'm counting on that," Tony lowered his faceplate, still watching his father's shocked face as JARVIS took control of the Mark V. Bruce handed Clint the shirt, just in time as the first hail of bullets came through the door.

Tony just hoped that Howard didn't react like everyone else when he saw the Hulk for the first time, as his bondmate started growing in size.

 

*             *            *

 

Hulk doesn't like small labs. Small labs are where puny Banner tries to get rid of Hulk.

Others shooting at Hulk.

Shooting at Hulk friends.

Shooting at Mate.

Hulk roars, breaks the door and throws the soldiers away.  Arrow-man is behind, yells at Hulk not to hurt puny soldiers.

Hulk grunts. Hulk not stupid, he knows Mate doesn't want to hurt soldiers.

Banner never wants to hurt soldiers.

But soldiers want to hurt Hulk. And Mate.

Hulk smashes walls, doors, weapons. Clears path for Mate, and friends.

Hulk grins as puny soldiers run.  In his head, Mate cheers on, reminds not to hurt soldiers.

Reminds to look after the other shiny man. Mate's father.

Winghead's mate.

A soldier shots at Spider-lady, but Hulk protects her.  Spider-lady smiles. Hulk smiles back.

Hulk has family now.

Hulk smashes everyone who hurts family.

Everyone who tries to hurt family.

Hulk grins.

 

*             *           *

 

"I don't see why we have to do this right now, Pepper."

Pepper looked at her still bedridden bondmate and sighed, tiredly.  In a perfect world, they both would've have time to rest after he had almost died because his chest had been pierced with a mystical staff from outer space. As it was, he had only survived because Loki had missed his heart for one inch, and Pepper had been too stubborn to stop breathing.

Score one for the ants, she guessed, and hoped that, wherever he was, Loki was suffering at least half of what she had suffered in those long three days.

But theirs was not a perfect world, and Pepper had to deal with the fallout of an alien invasion, her bondmate almost dying, her boss bonding with a man considered property of the United States' army, and her boss's father coming back from the death.

She couldn't take a day for herself, much less a week.

"If we don't do this now, Fury will convince you to go back to active service next time you talk to him," she said, kissing his cheek. "Consider this a bandaid. The faster we rip it, the faster we'll heal."

Phil sighed, grabbing her hand.

"I don't want you to be in more danger," he said, and she could feel the worry emanating from him.  It was clearer, sharper than before their stay in the hospital. Everything felt stronger now.

"If you don't want me to tell Fury about our bond, I won't." She kissed his hand softly.  She had never understood his need to keep their union a secret from even his boss and closest friends. Not until that morning, when Tony and the other Avengers had arrived to the Malibu house with Howard Stark on tow. Tony had only told her half the story, but it was enough for Pepper to start hating SHIELD.

"I trust you," Phil answered. "If you think you can't make this work without telling him, then go ahead. I'll stand by you every step of the way."

Pepper nodded, took a deep breath, just as when she prepared for interviews with the press, and walked to her desk, to make the hardest phone call of her career.

"What the hell does Stark thinks he's doing?" NIck Fury's face appeared in her screen, just seconds after she made the connection. "Can you explain to me, Miss Potts why he roped the rest of the Avengers, and two SHIELD agents to kidnap two people from their medical care?"

"Good afternoon to you too, Colonel Fury," Pepper said, standing straight. As much as the man intimidated her, she had been chased by Obadiah Stane in his warmonger armor, almost killed by Vanko with his prototype whiplash, and wrangled Tony Stark every day. She could do this. "I think that the question is rather what was SHIELD thinking by unlawfully keeping two men away from their families and withholding their medical information to pretend they were dead?"

"Miss Potts, I don't..."

"Don't bother lying to me, Colonel," Pepper interrupted.  She was starting to feel in her element again. This was her superpower—shutting the higher ups down before they shut her down. "I know for a fact that you told Mr. Stark and Mr. Rogers that Agent Phillip J. Coulson had died during the attack to the helicarrier, when in truth SHIELD operatives moved him to Lenox Hill where he was operated under the name John Doe. We also know that you had a letter drafted and ready to send to Agent Coulson's family informing them of their loss. While I can understand why it was needed at the moment to lie to Iron Man and Captain America in order to make them concentrate on saving the planet, I fail to see how it would help to make Mrs. Coulson think that her oldest son had died."

"That is a matter of National Security, Mrs. Potts, until we are certain that Agent Coulson was not compromised by Loki's staff..."

"We are certain that he wasn't," Pepper didn’t move, but she knew that behind her Phil was flinching.  He had always prided himself on the fact that he had Nick Fury's complete trust. "H e presents none of the symptoms Loki's victims showed. Of course, if you desire, we can also run the same tests for Agent Barton, who, I believe, helped to save Manhattan just hours after being controlled by Loki himself."

"Agent Barton was released by his bondmate, who vouched for him," Fury explained patiently. "I expected you to be more rational than Mr. Stark, Miss. Potts."

"Did anyone vouch for Selvig besides Agent Barton's bondmate?" Pepper countered. She was starting to think she could get out of the conversation with their secret intact. "Because she is here, and she is willing to vouch for Agent Coulson too."

Fury glared at her, and Pepper returned the glare with confidence.  Behind her, Phil was projecting his support. He knew how to deal with Fury. As long as she didn't show fear, she would be fine.

"As Agent Romanoff and Agent Barton aided Mr. Stark, Mr. Odinson and Captain Rogers with breaking into a SHIELD's secret base, that doesn't fill me with confidence." Fury was now edging on sarcasm.  The tone he used when talking with Tony, when he assumed Pepper was out of hearing range.

Pity for him that, with JARVIS installed, Pepper's hearing range was far wider than anyone would believe.

"Same secret base where Mr. Howard Stark was held illegally, I presume?" She blinked, as if confused. A trick she had learned from her PA 'Natalie'. "I've talked with my lawyers, Agent Fury. You won't like the conclusions they arrived to."

"Mr. Stark was a willing participant in a time-consuming experiment that..."

"Didn't require for him to be declared legally dead," Pepper finished for him. "As he was kept in a medical coma, there was no need for him to be declared dead, unless of course SHIELD had an interest into keeping all the improvements that Mr. Stark created for you a secret from Mr. Stark's son.  If Howard Stark was dead, no one would re-open those contracts, right?  In fact, no one would know those contracts existed."

"I don't think I like what you're implying, Miss Potts." Fury's glare grew. She could almost feel the weight of it on her shoulders, but that also told her she was winning. He was trying to intimidate her, and she was not going to let that happen.

"I'm not implying anything, Colonel." Trying to appear nonchalant, she picked up one of the folders she had prepared for the call. "I just want you to understand what is Stark Industries position regarding this matter."

"And that is?"

"SHIELD will not press any charges or try to have any kind of disciplinary actions against Agents Romanoff, Coulson and Barton, Captain Rogers, Dr. Banner, Mr. Odinson, or Mr. Stark. Howard Stark will remain under the care of his son.  Also, SHIELD will insure that Dr. Banner's record is wiped clean, and that the U.S. Army stops any attempt to kidnap him in the future, as he is no longer their employee. He and the other members of the Avenger Initiative will also cut ties with SHIELD as they will keep protecting the Earth in case a new threat arises, but won't answer to SHIELD or the people who decided that nuking Manhattan was a viable strategy."

"Is that it?" Fury raised his eyebrow. "What do we get in exchange?"

"We will not sue you and every SHIELD agent for everything you've got and everything you'll make in your life. Also, because it's in the interest of the public to know, Mr. Stark and the rest of the Avengers will give a series of press conferences explaining exactly how SHIELD almost caused an interstellar conflict with Asgard, failed to properly contain an alien terrorist, and participated in the attempted nuclear attack to Manhattan." Pepper smiled, as if she was about to close a deal. "However, Stark Industries is also ready to extend a helping hand. Mr. Stark will remain a consultant to SHIELD but will do all business with the organization through a Stark Industries approved liaison, who will also serve as a contact with the Avengers team.  Agent Coulson will fill this position, as soon as he returns to active duty. In the meantime, he has recommended Agent Maria Hill."

"Not Agents Romanoff or Barton?" 

"Agents Romanoff and Barton will decide for themselves if they wish to continue their current arrangement with SHIELD. If not, they will be welcomed in the private sector."

"With Stark Industries, I assume.  Who will be backing up the Avengers."

"You catch on fast," Pepper lifted a new file. "Our lawyers have the papers drawn, and we'll send them to you immediately.  Do you agree to these terms, or do I have to start calling the press?"

Fury held her gaze for a long time, but Pepper didn't back out.  She didn't even need Phil's support to do so. The only thing she needed was to remember the feeling of Loki's spear going through her chest.

"Send the papers," Fury finally said. "If we see anything that needs to be changed, we'll send our legal department, but as for now, the terms sound fair."

"Very well. Agent Coulson will contact you as soon as he has a clean bill of health. Good night, Colonel Fury." Without letting him finish, Pepper cut the call, and turned back to Phil, who was smiling at her. "That could've gone better."

"Pepper, dear, you just blackmailed the director of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division," he told her, as she sat next to him so he could hug her. "It couldn't have gone better."

"We still have a ton of paperwork to deal with," Pepper leaned against his shoulder, careful of the bandage and the IVs that were still tied to his right side. "Do you know how hard it is to bring someone back from the dead?"

"That would be form Grey-768.  Fill it by triplicate, and have it send to my desk. I'll take care of the rest."

For one long moment, Pepper didn't know if Phil was joking or not, until he finally smiled. That small, almost shy smile that he had given her that first day when they had met and she used him to get away from Obadiah.

Later, she would have to go downstairs, to talk to Natasha, Clint and Thor about Tony's plans for the Tower; to tell them how she had fixed their plans for the team with Fury.  Much later, she would go down to the lab, where Tony and Bruce were still reviewing Howard's vitals. For a man that came back from the death, he was very healthy in her opinion, but there were still some anomalies that they had to check.  She also would need to talk to Captain Rogers, once he stopped hovering over both Starks.

But for now, the only thing she wanted was to close her eyes, and listen to Phil's beating heart.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this is the end, except for a small epilogue that will be up soonish. I know, I know, I left a lot of questions unanswered, but I swear, the sequel is coming. I just needed to take care of another plot bunny before I tackled this universe again.
> 
> Once again, I thank my darling beta a_raleigh, who did a marvelous work by keeping said other bunnies at bay while this was being finished.


	18. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After all is said and done... there are other people who are interested in what the Avengers did.

Fury had to admire the guts of Virginia Potts. No one had ever dared to hang up on him. Not even Tony Stark and Stark made it a sport to try and anger Fury.

And now, he had to face the Council again, to put things at ease. They wouldn't like the results of the situation.  Fury knew that at least two of them would accept the situation with only token protest. It was the third the one that worried him, but for now, Fury had enough leverage to get them out of his back for a while.

Of course, it was their own fault. Fury made sure they knew that. Whoever had been the idiot that thought that nuking New York was a viable battle plan, who had dared to get one of his Agents -now ex-agent- to disobey his direct orders and nuke New York had given Tony Stark the biggest possible weapon to convince the rest of the Avengers, including Captain Rogers, to deflect from SHIELD.

They would protect the Earth, and would answer to their call. But on their own terms. 

Which was exactly what he had expected them to do.

It would've a pity to lose Agents Romanoff and Barton, but Fury thought that they still could reach an agreement with them.  A part time job, as it were, as long as it didn't conflict with whatever they did with Stark and the others.

He hadn't expected them to find about Agent Coulson so soon though.

"Agent Hill, please walk with me," he asked his second in command. What he wanted to discuss was not for other ears. Not until he made a thorough review of all the Agents positioned within the Helicarrier where loyal to him and wouldn't go obeying contradicting orders.

"Sir?"   The Agent in question was swiftly at his side and Fury was happy to see that she wasn't limping anymore.  During the clean up after Loki's attack, she had been the last one to go to the sickbay, and hadn't done so until she had been sure everyone else had been looked at by the doctors.  If Stark hadn't named her as the temporal liaison for the Avengers, Fury would've insisted on her anyway.

"How is your bondmate?" he asked, casually.  Hill had been bonded for almost as long as she had been in SHIELD. 

"Still alive, obviously," she shook her head. Fury knew the Agent disliked talking about her bond, but sometimes, it was necessary to do so. "Trying to get an appeal, to get me to vouch for his freedom."

"Would you do it?" as they spoke, they reached the outer door of the Helicarrier. Outside, the wind would've enough cover for the rest of their conversation.

"Never, sir.  As far as I'm concerned, he's guilty of treason. You know that as well as I do."

Fury nodded, looking at the still damaged exterior of the helicarrier. Hill had gotten a raw deal with her bond, as her intended had gone insane and tried to destroy SHIELD with prototype gravitation weapons. She had been the one to bring him down, and subsequently had spent a week in a coma due to the trauma. For that alone, she was the best person to talk to Stark about the importance of continuing the bond-experiments with his father, Agent Romanoff and Agent Barton.

If they agreed to that, then Fury's plan would continue with just that small deviation.  Of course, it all hinged on Stark convincing Dr. Banner to stay in the United States, where it was easier to keep an eye on him.  If Stark did it, then everything would fall in place, soon.

All in all, he could say the first mission of the Avenger Initiative had been a moderate success.

 

*             *           *

 

"Turn that off," General  Thaddeus E. "Thunderbolt" Ross sat heavily on his command  chair as his second in command made sure that all the monitors were off.

He should've happy. Deep down, he knew that this should've seen as a good thing. After losing Banner in Pakistan, twice, and cleaning the mess that Blonksy had caused, he knew he was not in good standing with his superiors.  But with Banner in American soil, things were different. Here, he could chase him, and Banner didn't have many hide holes or allies left.

And while the news seemed to be under the delusion that the monster had helped against the invasion, Ross knew better.  There was no trusting Banner. One moment, the creature could be useful, even save lives, and the next, innocent people would've dying in the wake of destruction that the monster left behind.

The only place where that thing would've safe was in a cage, where his agents could figure out the exact process that Banner had used. Refine it, to avoid the mistakes that had occurred with Blonsky.  A way to control both beasts, in the best case scenario.

Of course, he had to act _before_ Fury and his bleeding heart idiots tried to get Banner out of the country, or worse, use the invasion as an excuse to start thinking that the monster had human rights.  If Banner managed to cross the border, Ross wouldn't get permission to try and extract him again unless there was a Hulk sighting.

His hands would be tied again, as they had been after the Harlem incident. After his own daughter had testified against him.

"Call the team," he finally said, getting up. Thinking about Elizabeth wouldn't help matters at this point. His daughter would never know how much he had sacrificed for her and it was for the best. "It's time to start the hunt."

 

*             *             *

 

"I've got something you've got to watch," Betty Ross said, as soon as Leonard opened the door to the apartment where he lived now. "It's important."

"Hi, Betty," Leonard greeted her, with the same hopeful smile that he had every time she accepted to talk to him. At the same time, she could feel the relief and love he still had for her through their bond. The only reason why she still talked to him was that feeling, the fact that she knew that he loved her unconditionally, even if she couldn't forgive him just yet.  "I thought our dinner was tomorrow."

"It was. It is, but... I need to see this with you.”  She came into the room, holding a dvd. She had taken two days to work the courage to come to see him, and while intellectually she knew that he had probably seen it, that it didn't change anything from the past, she still needed to make him see.

To make him understand.

He probably sensed her nervousness, as he took off his glasses and shook his head.

"It's about your friend being in New York, isn't it?"

"Please, Leonard... just watch." At her plea, he finally accepted.

The video was not the best quality, as it was a bunch of footage taken with cellphones from people on Manhattan that day, who had taken it upon themselves to record as much as they could, and later, as the news started to spin their own versions of the facts, uploaded them in Youtube, blip and every possible video server.  Scenes that weren't found on the press, like Captain America getting almost killed by an alien inside a bank, or the archer falling from a building before crashing into it.

But Betty didn't care about that.

The first glimpse of Bruce was almost a blurry mess, as someone yelled  'Oh, god, it's the monster from Harlem', and soon the camera moved from following Iron Man, to show Bruce stopping with one single punch the first space whale that had appeared over Manhattan. And the scream of terror turned into a victory yell, as someone else added ‘Yes! He's on our side! Told you the green one was a good one!"

That set the tone for the rest of the commentaries, as Betty bit her lips every time Bruce was seemingly hurt. She knew,  thanks to her quite close experience, that his skin was pretty much indestructible, heat resistant and that  there was only one other person on the planet who could bring him to his knees. Still, it was hard to see him jumping around, hitting things so big that they made him look small.

"He saved them all, see?" Betty insisted, as the scene shifted to Bruce running through a building, with people actually cheering him on.  That was probably one of Betty's favorites, because people were finally seeing Bruce's greener side just like she did. A good man, trying to do good. A hero.

After that, the footage was almost done.  Someone caught an image of Bruce jumping to Stark Tower, after an explosion, then back out again to chase another of the space whales.  The alien force obviously taking a page from her father's strategies when dealing with an angry Bruce shot at him from all directions, until it was impossible to see Bruce among the smoke.

And then, of course, the moment that had been caught by every single phone camera in Manhattan that day: Iron Man directing a missile to the portal and then, seconds later, falling down, powerless.

Only to be caught by Bruce in mid air.

Leonard paused the image right there, with the small, red and gold figure held carefully  in Bruce's huge, green arms.

"See, Leonard? That's why..." She started saying, but Leonard held his hand up, to ask for silence. Through their bond, she could feel a wave of happiness, which made absolutely no sense.

Until he looked at her, smiling. Then she realized that it was not happiness, but relief. As if a weight that he had been carrying for years had been lifted.

"I know how we can prove to the world that Bruce is still human, no matter how big and green he gets," he said, his joy contagious. "We can get your father off his back. But first, we need to talk to him."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO, this is it. But don't worry, a sequel is coming. It will take a bit longer, since I really want to work on other stories before coming back to this universe. But I'll add the series name now so you guys can subscribe if you want to know exactly when I update it.


End file.
